Persona 4- Lovers in Fragments
by DigiFox0
Summary: "I'm going to like the me you found... After all, I like the you who found her" A series of short, one-shot, fics using the 30 Day OTP Challenge Prompts. YuxRise. Mostly Fluff. Some background shipping. Current Prompt- Christmas Special (Complete)
1. Chapter 1 - Holding Hands

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found... After all, I like the you who found her"<em>  
>YuxRise<p>

Day 1- Holding Hands

xxx

A/N: Yeah, so i saw this over on the Fire Emblem portal and thought "Yeah, sounds good. Might do that. Flex those creative muscles etc." Basically updates daily (In theory, i'm quite lazy) and 30 short fluffy fics for you all :) This one is way longer than I wanted it to be too. Still, should be fine. Next one will be a lot better, since i actually have an idea for that one XD Enjoy this one anyway.

xxx

Yu Narukami wasn't really used to his relationship yet. Everything that happened over the last few days wasn't exactly planned. After and his teammate and friend, Rise Kujikawa went to get steak or kebab or something with him (Honestly he wasn't really paying attention. He just wanted to hang out with Rise) he somehow ended up with a girlfriend. He wasn't complaining, he liked Rise a lot. She was the life and soul of the team and never failed to perk everyone up with her bubbly attitude.

He just wasn't… used to it. Here he was, walking down Inaba's shopping district with Rise's hand in his like it was the most normal thing in the world. It must have been really obvious that he was uncomfortable as he felt Rise's grip on his hand tighten slightly. She looked at him with her big brown eyes with a look of concern behind them.

"Is everything OK, Senpai?" she asked her new boyfriend.

"Hmm?" he said, her words breaking him out of his stupor. He had a tendency to space out and think for long periods without saying anything. He was just that type. What with the murders and investigation going on, he was thinking even more often than normal.

"I _said_ is everything OK?" She said, pouting a little. She always did this. Whether it was her inner actress or her playful nature coming out, she always looked genuinely hurt when Yu wasn't listening to her.

"Yeah, everything's fine" Yu replied as he squeezed her hand and flashed his most convincing false smile at her in a vain attempt to reassure the young idol.

"Only reason I ask is because you're doing that thing with your face again"

"I do a thing with my face?"

"Yeah, when you're thinking about stuff you stare into the distance like some spacey weirdo"

"Huh…"

He couldn't help but wonder about that. Was he really that easy to read? He always assumed he looked more stoic than spacey…

"You're doing it again!" Rise chirped in, punctuating her words with a giggle.

"Honestly, Rise. Everything's fine, I'm still not used to this I guess" he said, gesturing down to their entwined fingers

"I find that hard to believe" Rise said joyfully, never dropping her seemingly perpetual good mood.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He tried to pout as he said those words. Apparently he couldn't pull it off

"What are you doing?" Rise's giggles from earlier were developing into a full bodied laughed.

"Pouting" Yu replied, still trying to retain the façade.

"Well you look ridiculous!" Rise stuttered out between bouts of laughter.

All Yu could do at this point was laugh too. It was infectious. She had that effect on everyone in the Investigation Team. It was admirable really, that even in the face of all the Shadows at killings she could still laugh. If anyone else was on the mic while Yu was fighting, he probably wouldn't do nearly as well.

After Rise calmed down she finally explained her earlier point. "It's just that you're a really cool and handsome guy so you've probably had a girlfriend or two. Especially out in the city."

"I haven't. In case you hadn't noticed, I don't really talk as much as other guys. I kind of got overlooked I guess."

"Really?!" She stopped walking at that comment, but Yu walked a few more steps ahead before stopping, the only thing still connecting them were their hands.

"So…" Rise said, confused. It was as if Yu had presented her with one hundred difficult English words and asked rise to translate them all. That was the level of thought she was putting in to a simple thought.

Yu closed the gap between them and unlinked their hands, instead placing both of them on her waist. He'd seen guys in anime and drama and stuff do this so he figured he should try it. Surprisingly, he was calmer like this. He didn't have to live with Rise's fingers wriggling around in his hands.

"You're my first girlfriend." That wasn't strictly true. There was that girl back when he was seven, but that was nothing more than saying she was his girlfriend. A few girls back in his previous school had confessed to him too. Over his years in High School he'd had several love letters dropped in his shoe locker.

None of these girls were his type however. They were like Ai Ebihara was on the outside except their bitchiness was more than skin deep. They wanted him because he was "hot". Rise was better than any of them. She seemed a little superficial but scratch the surface, even just a little bit, and you'd find a sweet, caring, determined young woman. She was amazing. Maybe that's why Yu wanted to be with her, even on their first meeting.

Rise grabbed her senpai's hands from her waist and placed them in her own. She was smiling as she did so. It was one of the sincerest, simplest, love filled expressions Yu had ever seen on anyone's face.

"You're doing it again" she giggled

"I only do it when I'm thinking about you"

Rise giggled again. It was cliché, but there was literally no other way to describe it. It was like a babbling brook.

"Senpai" Rise said, looking her boyfriend right in the eyes "It makes me really happy that I'm your first girlfriend. I feel really special right now"

Yu squeezed both of Rise's hands "Play your cards right and you might be my only girlfriend"

The couple stared at each other. They'd only been dating few a few days but it felt like they'd been together forever.

"C'mon" Yu said, releasing one of Rise's hands and moved to her side. "The others are waiting for us"

"Sure, let's go" she said, still smiling like a fool. "You can buy me a steak when we get there!"

"Oh sure thing. By the way, when did you turn into Chie?"

The couple laughed as they made their way to Junes, surrounded by an echochamber of their blossoming love.

(A/N Yeah, endings are hard :/ What did you all think? Let me know and stuff. Be honest as you like :D)


	2. Chapter 2 - Cuddling

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 2- Cuddling

xxx

A/N: I should point out that these vignettes aren't in chronological order or anything. It just goes where the prompts tell it to. I could rearrange the prompts into chronological order but that would take me ages XD Enjoy :)

xxx

It was Christmas Morning. Yesterday, Yu and Rise spent the whole day together as a couple. The day long date culminated in cake in Yu's room. For the first time since they started dating several months ago, Rise stayed at Yu's place. He's stayed with her a couple of times, when Nanako and Dojima were in the hospital and he couldn't bear to stay on his own but she'd never stayed here.

Yu was surprised he was awake this early. 6AM was an odd hour to get up, even for him. Usually he was super organised but it was excessive even by his standards. Rise was still sleeping. Yu couldn't help but stare at her. After all, she was still wrapped in his arms. She smelled nice…

The instant Yu thought that, Rise began groggily awakening. Her eyes opened slowly and semi- focused onto her senpai's face.

"Hey" she said, still half asleep. She sounded just like she did when Yu first met her. He knew that'd fade away once she got some breakfast or coffee or something. What do girls do to wake up anyway?

"What time is it?" Asked Rise, who was still trying to decide whether she was awake or asleep.

"Hey" said Yu with a smile. Even like this, she's still adorable. "About 6 in the morning"

"Uggh…" Rise groaned. Clearly she isn't a morning person.

She burrowed her head deep into the crook of Yu's neck, and he pulled her closer

"So last night was…" He tried to avoid thinking about last night. What happened wasn't a mistake, it was wonderful. It's just that only a few months ago he was losing sleep over holding Rise's hand and last night they…

"It was good" Rise replied, snapping him out of his reverie. Apparently she woke up a bit as her speech pattern was returning to normal. "Seriously, Senpai, you get worked up over the weirdest stuff"

"No, getting nervous about playing with Nanako is weird, getting nervous over…"

"That was one time!" Rise interrupted, pouting as she did so.

"I'm just saying that out of everything we've done together, that was the most nerve-wracking. You were nervous too."

"I was not" Rise's pouting must have been hurting her face by this point

"Senpai" Yu began, speaking in the voice he used for the cross-dressing pageant. "Can I stay here tonight?" He concluded, punctuated with a nervous cough or grunt

"Was that supposed to be your impression of me?" Rise giggled

"Yeah" Yu said, squeezing her as he did so "Likeness is pretty spot on, huh?"

"You sounded stupid"

"Anyway, I'm going to make you some breakfast"

As Yu began moving away, a small sound came from his girlfriend. It signified something between disappointment and longing. He'd heard her do it before, usually to get him to help her study or to hang out with her when she was feeling lonely or bored.

It worked every single time

"Don't you want to eat something?"

"It's 6AM… And I'm cold…"

"Then put some clothes on"

"But they're all the way over there…" Rise gestured to where the couple had discarded their clothing the night before. "I'd be even colder if I got out of bed… And I'd be lonely..."

"Rise, I'm making eggs twenty feet away" Said Yu. He always got a little frustrated when she acted like a child to get her way. It made him feel even older than he already was. The age difference between the two was only a year but when she acted like this he felt more like her big brother than boyfriend. It was cute, but nothing kills the mood more than the image of your young cousin popping into your head while you're making out.

"If only there was a way to fix both of those problems with one solution…" Rise pondered, tapping her index finger on her chin in mock thought.

Yu simply smiled and climbed back into bed, resigning to his girlfriend's wishes. It was too early to argue with her. Another hour or so couldn't hurt, anyway. He felt Rise move wrap her arms round his neck and plant a kiss on his cheek. He did the same thing to the top of her head and stared at his light fixture. The only sound he could hear was Rise breathing.

"Senpai?" Rise broke the silence after what felt like forever "Seriously, don't worry about last night. It was amazing. I know sometimes I move too fast or I pressure you to do stuff, but that's only 'cause I want to skip to the end…"

"Skip to the end?" He looked away from the ceiling and right at Rise "What do you mean?"

"You know when you play those dating sim games or read a good romance? You want to skip all the stuff at the start at go straight to when the characters settle down and love each other forever. That's what I want with you, Senpai"

"I don't know, I like all the stuff before that"

"You think so?"

"Yeah. It's nice seeing the couple grow and change with eachother and everything. The journey's just as important as the end... you know?"

"Yeah, but only 'cause i'm with you now" Rise said, smiling once again as she leaned up to kiss her boyfriend. "I love you, Senpai"

"I love you too, Kōhai" The whole Senpai/Kōhai thing started out as a joke, but had developed into pet names for each other. It was just another one of those quirks in their relationship. An imperfection in thier perfect lives.


	3. Chapter 3 - Watching a Movie

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 3- Watching a Movie/Gaming

xxx

A/N: Went with the movie on this one. I don't think Yu or Rise even own a game system XD Besides, the move thing sparks ideas which you shall see unfold here. Also, thanks for the really positive feedback, it means a lot :D Anyway, enjoy :) 

xxx

It was another one of those lazy Sunday afternoons. Dojima was out of the house on business, Nanako was playing at a friend's house and wouldn't be back until a little later. Yu had the house all to himself. Well, not _all_ to himself. Rise was there. He didn't do this enough, just laze around with his girlfriend. Rise had suggested that they go out with their friends to Okina or somewhere, but as soon as Yu suggested they just stay in she excitedly ran home, changed into her sweats and grabbed some snacks and a DVD from her room. Her Senpai had never seen her in her sweats before (In fact, she promised him he never would. She didn't want him seeing her getting all flabby) so she couldn't help but wonder how he'd react.

"Senpaaaaai!" Rise yelled excitedly as Yu opened his front door, panting heavily from the run. "I brought snacks and a movie and stuff" She held the bag of popcorn and film over her head triumphantly, as if she just slew a demon and was keeping its head as a trophy.

"Awesome" Yu replied, mentally piecing together the scene in front of him. Rise was wearing her sweatsuit, something he never thought he'd see. She looked adorable. No doubt cuddling would be happening later (Why else would she go home and get changed?)

He gestured for her to come inside and she plopped herself on the couch. As she did so, she threw the DVD onto the table and the popcorn at Yu.

"Can you deal with this, Senpai?" she pleaded

"Did you break your legs on the way to the couch?" Yu asked, raising an eyebrow

"No?" Rise answered, genuinely confused

"Then there's no reason you can't do it"

"There is! It's your place, it'd be rude to use your microwave. And I brought it so…"

"Alright fine" Yu said, finally giving up. There was no use arguing with her, Yu learned that ages ago. He didn't mind though. He got to stare at her curled up on his couch while he made it.

"So what movie did you bring?" Yu enquired, moving over to his microwave and putting the small packet into it.

"It's not technically out yet. It was the last movie I was in before I took my break" Rise replied, looking over the top of the microwave as she pulled a large blanket over herself.

Yu groaned at this. He'd seen Rise's movies before and there was always the same link between them. The first being they were always love stories and the second being that he'd have to watch his girlfriend kissing some actor. He knew it was all fake but even so…

"Don't say that, it'll be good!" Rise said as the microwave dinged. Yu started pouring the popcorn into a bowl as Rise continued. "It's got action and romance and everything! You'll love it"

He knew he wouldn't, but he played along. It was either this or study and he'd much rather have a cute girl in his arms than a pile of books.

"Alright, but this better be really good, otherwise you'll have to do something for me"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Senpai!" Rise gasped, throwing a pillow at him as he crossed the room to hand Rise the popcorn. It narrowly missed him.

After he handed Rise the bowl, he put the DVD in the player and snuck underneath the blanket with Rise's back pressing into his chest and his arms around her neck. She was warm... He probably shouldn't be thinking like that given what she was doing. He could feel her squirming around a little to get comfortable. He hoped to any god that was listening that she wouldn't do that too much. The last thing either of them needed was for this to get awkward…

The main character of the movie was some boyish looking guy with stupid hair and grey eyes. Yu didn't even know him, but he somehow hated him simply because he knew that this guy would be making out with his girlfriend in about an hour.

"He looks kind of like you, Senpai!" Rise joked, craning her neck to get a good look at her boyfriend. She was right too, Stupid Hair Guy was about the same height and had the same colour eyes. He even maintained that same vacant expression that Yu kept up virtually all the time…

"No he doesn't, his hair's the wrong colour"

"Yeah, but everything else is almost the same!" The idol said, enthused. She clearly enjoyed these movies, Yu wasn't going to take that away from her just because he was jealous of guys who didn't even exist.

They continued to watch the movie. Rise played a woman in witness protection that the Lead Guy happened to fall in love with. The film had just reached the romantic climax. The punch to Yu's gut was coming, all he could do was steel himself for it.

"I hated this scene…" Rise chimed in.

"Really?"

"Yeah, it was a pain to film. They wanted me to get excited and we did like twenty takes of it. I just couldn't get it right…"

"Why's that?" Yu said, hopefully.

"I just couldn't get excited about kissing that guy. He kept making passes at me off-screen so I just kept seeing him as a creep…"

"So how'd you get around it?"

"I… I don't want to say" Rise giggled nervously

"C'mon, please?" said Yu, squeezing his girlfriend

"I… fantasised…"

"Fantasised?" said Yu, raising an eyebrow

"I thought I told you to get your mind out of the gutter?"

"And I remember ignoring you"

This earned Yu a giggle. God, how I loved to hear her laugh. I never failed to lift his spirits.

"What I mean to say is I fantasised about my dreams" Rise corrected.

"Dreams?"

"Yeah…" Rise said, smiling wistfully as the characters on screen continued their tension filled dialogue. "I'll tell you about them sometime, Senpai"

"What time is sometime?"

"When I know 100% that you can make them come true…"

Rise leaned backwards, moving in to kiss her leader. Rise's lean was cut short by Yu's lips, meeting them halfway. It wasn't filled with passion, it didn't even last that long. Just a simple kiss, brimming with love.

As they shared their kiss, the Rise on the screen was kissing her acting partner. But neither of the couple on the couch noticed.

Because for once, Yu didn't care about what was happening on the screen.


	4. Chapter 4 - On a Date

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 4- On a Date

xxx

A/N: Wanted to look at Rise's perspective for this one. Been focusing mainly on Yu's POV (Even though it's a 3rd Person Narration, it's still mostly his thoughts) so might focus on Rise for a bit longer. Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Rise's heart was beating faster than it had in a long time. Even when her friends were fighting Shadows and she was supporting them, she wasn't this nervous. Maybe it was because she knew her friends could protect themselves. This time she was going in alone. Anything could go wrong.

Rise had liked Yu since she met him. The way he saved her from herself in the TV was damn heroic. Not only that, but he carried her all the way back to her house and visited all the time while she was recovering. She naturally developed a tiny crush on him. That's what she told herself anyway.

"It's just a little crush" she'd say to herself in the mirror "If he rejects you, it's not a big deal. You'll get over it." She was lying to herself. Even way back then, she loved him. She just didn't realise.

But now, all her dreams we coming true. She was going on a date with her Senpai. This was the best day she'd had since coming back to Inaba… So why was she so nervous?

It was just Yu.

As soon as that thought materialized, she dismissed it. "Just" Yu? It wasn't "Just" Yu. He was perfect. The man who saved her life, The man that took the time to meet the real Rise, The man that helped her through her identity crisis… The man she loved?

Yeah…

She'd keep that to herself for a while though. Yu was approaching. He looked amazing.

Well, he looked no different from normal. To Rise though, he always looked amazing. Just seeing him walking down the hallway at school made her heart flutter and every time they talked she could almost feel her it explode. Even now, as he waved to her to get her attention, she wanted to run over to him and leap into his arms…

"Might be a bit early in the relationship to glomp him" Rise said under her breath.

"What was that?" Yu was a lot closer than she though

"Ermmm… Nothing?"

"Sure" he laughed. She loved hearing him laugh. It was such a rare occurrence so it was nice when it did happen. He always kept everything very close to his chest. It made him look so cool.

"You look good" Yu said to Rise. She made an extra special effort with her makeup and everything today. She needed to look good for Yu.

"Thanks" she giggled nervously.

Rise's stomach was tightening a little. She was going to die of nerves at any second. What if she said something stupid? Would he hate her? Would everything fall apart? She couldn't live with herself if she accidentally made the boy she loved hate her. Luckily, Yu had a plan.

"So I was thinking we could go to Okina?"

"Sounds great, Senpai!" She silently thanked him and the heavens that he'd come into this with some semblance of an itinerary in mind.

After a short train ride, the young couple were standing in the bustling metropolitan hub that was Okina… Well as "Bustling and Metropolitan" Yasoinaba got. It was no Tokyo, but there were way more people here than Inaba.

"So what did you have in mind, Senpai?" Rise asked. The train ride had calmed her down a little.

"I was thinking we could go shopping and then get coffee or something" He smiled at her as he told her his plans.

"But you hate shopping!" It was true. Whenever Rise managed to trick him into coming shopping with her he just ended up being a pack mule for all the bags.

"Yeah, but you like it and I still get to spend time with you. Seems like a win to me."

Before she knew it, they were hanging out like always. They were chatting about school drama (Yoskue and Chie's "friendship" came up more than once). They even had to deal with Risette stalkers just like before.

After a few hours of shopping, Rise ran out of money and energy. The two finally sat down at Chagall Cafe, exhausted.

"Hey, Senpai?" Rise asked, meekly.

"Hmm?"

"Why'd you do this for our first date?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" Rise started. This thought had been dancing on the edge of her mind all day and thought she might as well ask. It was only fair to know what was going on in this relationship

"It's just that out of everything we could have done, you decided to do something we'd have done if this wasn't a date."

"Is that bad?"

"No! Not at all, it was super fun!" She had to cover her tracks now, she didn't want her senpai to think she didn't have fun because she did. There was just something bothering her.

"It's just… Do you not like me the way I like you?" Why else did he do the average stuff that they'd done as friends? She had to know. It wasn't fair on either of them if the nature of their relationship wasn't crystal clear.

"No! It's not like that" Was that… Fear in Yu's voice? She'd never heard him talk like that. Ever. Not when he faced giant Shadows in the TV, not when he was stressed about exams, not when he was in mortal peril. He never spoke with such trepidation. Never Ever. So why now, of all times, did he crack?

"Honestly?" Yu began "I originally had a more "date" date planned."

Rise just listened intently. He had a different plan? Why did he change it? What was it?

"I was going to take you to Junes where we'd get food and have a picnic on top of the hill."

"I didn't take you for the classic romantic, Senpai" she giggled. Yu just smiled as he continued his story.

"At the last second I changed my plans. You looked so worried when I walked over that you might die of nerves" he laughed at his own joke. Rise just pouted

"I thought if we did something you were more comfortable with then you'd calm down and just have fun hanging out with me"

She was a little shocked to be honest. Yu dropped all his plans just to see her smile rather than wince?

"Senpai…"

"I like you, Rise. Don't think that I don't. I just wanted you to have fun on our date rather than constantly worry about upsetting me."

Rise was surprised at this turn of events. She sat there, a little dumbstruck as Yu sipped his coffee. He did all this for her? And he liked her? Her heart was doing flips and every synapse in her brain was sparking. Yu liked her? She couldn't believe it…

"Umm… You OK?" Yu said as he waved his free hand in front of Rise's face.

"Hmm?" Rise said, mirroring Yu's earlier response. "Oh, yeah. I'm great!"

"Good" Yu said, his look of concern replaced with a large smile, one which Rise returned.

"You better watch out, Senpai. When it's my turn to plan a date, I'm gonna blow this out of the water!" She meant it too. She was going to repay him for such a great date today.

It was nothing special, just an average day for the Idol and her senpai. The things he said, however were far from ordinary. They made her feel like she could take on the whole world. As long as she was with him, she could do anything.


	5. Chapter 5 - Kissing

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 5- Kissing

xxx

A/N: So I guess this is a part two, continuing from yesterday's? It was the only way I could see it going and still make the prompt significant (I've had them kissing a couple of times XD). Also, this one is long! Didn't even realise, just wanted to cram so much in! Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

To be fair, Rise had kept her promise to Yu. She had planned a pretty great date. Well, at least that's what she'd hoped. Despite considering Yu her best friend, she didn't really know what he'd expect from a date. In spite of that, she figured she'd done pretty well. All that was left to do was to confirm with him. As Rise's finger hovered over the call button of her cellphone, she remembered he was working at the daycare this afternoon…

"He'd make a good father…" Rise daydreamed aloud. She didn't let herself linger on this thought for too long though. If she did, she wouldn't get anything done for at least an hour. Her thoughts would be occupied of their potential future together and she'd be practicing wedding speeches in the mirror until she had to get ready. She settled on a text message instead.

xxx

Yu hated kids sometimes. Not all the time. Most of the time they were great. He got along well with virtually everybody and kids were no exception. Today though, they were driving him insane. Arguing about the tiniest things and trying to tear him apart just getting his attention. He felt sorry for the kid nobody liked and had the gall to play with him before anyone else. This didn't go down so well with the other kids. Elated doesn't even begin to describe his mood as he sat in the break room for an hour to eat a light snack. It was so noisy outside from all the shouting that he wouldn't have heard his phone buzzing if it weren't on the table in front of him. He'd received a message. From the way it was typed, Yu didn't even have to look at the Sent By line to know who it was from.

"Seeeeenpaaaai! \(^_^)/ We r still on 4 2nite, rite? 3" It read. Yu had to wonder that surely it took more effort to make that face than it did to not do it. At least Chie didn't add crazy faces in her texts… Yukiko even wrote in full prose. Still, he had to find it adorable. She made the effort after all.

He found himself smiling as he shot back with "Sure. What time?"

As soon as he swallowed his mouthful of, quite frankly piss poor cup noodles, his phone buzzed again.

"U 4got, senpai? T_T Its okai! i forgive you! ;) the store around 8, okai?"

"Sure. This time I'll remember. See you after work x"

"Okai! c u then, senpaaii! 3 xxxxxxx"

Yu chuckled to himself as he powered his phone off and put it back in his bag. He usually found that style of texting infuriating beyond words but from Rise, he managed to overlook it. At that moment, he heard the door open behind him. His boss poked her head through into the room

"Um, Yu-kun? Can I pull you off your break early? I'll let you leave earlier and everything. Please?"

"Sure" said Yu, sighing as he did so. He tightened the knot that kept his apron up and threw the half empty cup of flavourless noodles into the trashcan.

"Once more unto the breach" was all he could bring himself to say as he left the small room.

He was immediately tackled by two small boys.

xxx

After getting home, showering his sweat off and getting ready for his date, Yu started making his way to Rise's store. In spite of his stress filled day, he was looking forward to spending the night with his girlfriend. Just being with her would make him forget about the tackles he had endured at the daycare and the mental stresses of school. It was as he was walking past the bookstore in the shopping district that he remembered Rise's promise from last Sunday.

"I'll blow this date out of the water" he paraphrased to himself. He could only wonder what she had in store…

"Senpaaaai!"

Her voice cut through the night and was like a hit of caffeine straight to his brain. As soon as he heard it, he cheered up. Everything moved quicker. It all seemed more vivid and the whole night seemed just a little bit brighter after just one word from her.

She looked good too. She was wearing something he'd never seen her in before. How long did she have this in her wardrobe? Large pink and white bows adorned her pigtails. The same pattern was on her skirt and a white sailor shirt completed the ensemble. She carried a small wicker basket in one hand.

She ran the last couple of feet towards him, almost dropping the basket in the process. Before Yu knew what was happening, Rise had reached him and had her arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

"Shall we get going Senpai?" She asked him, finally releasing him from her embrace.

"Sure. Where are we headed?"

"The Floodplain"

"OK… Why?" Yu asked. It was rare for him to get confused so Rise relished the expression plastered across his face.

"You'll see when we get there!" She said in a singsong voice. Now she was teasing him. Great.

The walk to the floodplain flew by the young couple chatted idely about what was going on at school, Rise's store and The Case. Once they made it to the Floodplain, Rise pulled a large blanket out of the basket.

"I see you stole my picnic idea" Yu remarked

"I didn't steal it!" Rise pouted "It was a really good idea, but your setting was a little off."

"The Hill where you can see everything in town is worse than a storm drain?"

"Well, the time's important too... See, there's this meteor shower tonight and I thought we could watch it together, Senpai!" Rise puffed out her chest and wore a huge smile on her face, as if she'd secured victory over an unconquerable foe.

"That's… actually really good…" Yu had to concede, his date idea sucked compared to that.

Rise giggled at the praise she loved getting from him. It made her feel like she was doing everything right.

"C'mon, I brought food! You're probably hungry after dealing with kids all day. If you're too tired, I could spoon feed you, Senpai!" Rise winked to her boyfriend as they sat on the blanket. The worst part was, Yu knew she was only 70% joking about that. If he asked, she probably would…

"Umm, Senpai?" Rise had an innocent look on her face, which means what she was going to ask was anything but. "This outfit is really cute but it's not very warm… Do you mind if I get a little closer?"

"Sure"

"Really?" Rise dropped her façade in exchange for a look of shock. Yu learned long ago that to take the wind out of Rise's sails, he just had to agree to what she wanted. Besides, he kind of wanted her to. Who was he to deny a cute girl who wanted to cuddle with him under the stars? The couple rearranged themselves so that Rise sat between Yu's legs with her leaning against his chest.

"Do you have the time, Senpai? Like the _exact_ time?" It took Yu a second to search the time on the Internet. His phone was always a couple of minutes off.

"It's 9:17."

"Then we have two minutes" Rise leaned back a little more, allowing herself to relax a bit. "I'm really glad we're doing this, Senpai…"

Yu just stared down at the young idol. In that moment, there was nobody more amazing in the world. The way the moonlight reflected off the water and illuminated her face made her look like a pink and white clad goddess. Yet her she was, not only on this earthly plane but in his arms. He just felt lucky to be able to spend even a second of time with her.

Something was stirring inside the young Fool. Something he hadn't felt before. Ever. Maybe it was the setting, maybe it was the present company. He couldn't tell. Something had changed though…

"I'm just so happy you're here with me, Senpai…" Rise sat up out of his lap and turned to face him.

Rise's wrist beeped

"It's time" she said.

The couple looked at the sky in unison. As if Rise's words had summoned them, hundreds of tiny flecks of light sped across the night sky (Which itself was accompanied by its regular troupe of stars). They moved so fast. If either of them blinked they would miss it. Another would be along to take its place but a sight this magnificent could not be missed. Even for a single second.

As quickly as it had begun, it ended. There were no more lights, save the stars in the sky. The young couple brought their heads down, as if nothing had happened.

The shower of lights had affected the both of them profoundly, however. Before either of them knew what was happening their faces moved slowly towards one another, chins extended, lips slightly apart.

Yu closed his eyes. He knew what was happening and wanted it to be purely tactile. He wanted to remember the feeling of his first kiss.

Finally, after crossing what seemed like a ravine between them, their lips came into contact.

In that moment, time seemed to stop. Nobody else mattered, No_thing_ else mattered. The murders, the kidnappings, their friends, their town. None of it existed. Yu and Rise existed alone in the universe, bound together by the fragile touching of their lips. At any moment, it would all come crashing back to them. The second they opened their eyes and parted, everything would return.

For one brief, shining, perfect second. They were alone, yet also together.

After what seemed like an eternity, they parted. Not completely. While their lips separated, the two brought their foreheads together so they could talk in this sphere of perfection they had created.

"That was…" Rise began, neither wanting to speak first but knowing they would have to.

"Perfect" Yu finished.

"Yeah… I liked it"

"There'll be more, you know?"

"But that was special… That wasn't just _our_ first kiss, it was _mine_ too. My first real one, anyway" Rise said, as she brought her hand up to her lover's cheek.

"Mine too"

"I'm glad we could share that, Senpai…"

They were lost for words. They both felt that any conversation between them would be inadequate after what they just did.

Luckily, the heavens themselves talked for them. Out of the corners of their eyes, the Lover and the Fool saw more flecks of light, shooting across the sky. The cosmos was giving an encore performance in celebration of their union.

They sat there, awestruck, at this second wave. It was like the stars had come out just for them.

It was all the proof the two of them needed. Their love was indeed written in the stars.


	6. Chapter 6 - Wearing each other's clothes

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 6- Wearing each other's clothes

xxx

A/N: Been looking forward to this one… Kinda? It's slightly difficult to do a massive 1000 word one so this'll probably be one of the shorter ones… I say that, but it'll probably end up being the longest XD Also, I have to say this is probably my favourite of them so far. Don't really know why XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Rise didn't really know what to do with the thing on the back of her chair. Should she call him up? Tell him he left it? That'd mean he'd have to come back, she could probably convince him to hang around for at least an hour if he did… She could just give it to him at school but then she'd have to walk into his classroom mid-lesson…

Yu stayed over last night. With everything that had happened with Nanako, he couldn't bear to stay in Dojima's house alone, it would be like staying at a crime scene… Well, it _was_ staying at a crime scene. Rise had extended an invitation to stay at her place while he recovered. Yu accepted almost immediately. Nothing happened last night, just a lot of cuddling and talking. He had to hurry to leave in the morning, however, and in the rush he forgot his school jacket.

Rise always liked it when he wore his school jacket, weirdly. It made him look really… manly? Whenever she imagined her Senpai, he was wearing this jacket (That or he was naked, but that's a whole different story).

'I might as well wash it for him, at the very least' Rise thought to herself as she brought the jacket to her face to see if he'd been doing any laundry at all in the last week. She couldn't really blame him if he hadn't, after what his family is going through.

It smelled good... That is to say, it smelled like him.

'Maybe I could just…' Rise pondered. Could she wear her boyfriend's clothes? Is that crossing a line?

She didn't care, as before she knew it, she had the jacket on. It felt odd on her. It was a couple of sizes too big for her and hid her figure. She could see now why Naoto could pass so easily as a boy wearing a jacket like this one. Whereas Naoto could pull it off, Rise looked ridiculous. Her hands were hidden by the sleeves, leaving only her fingers poking through and the actual jacket part came down slightly too far past her hips. The overall effect made her look like a kid trying to be cool by wearing her dad's clothes.

She couldn't help but daydream though… She grabbed her Teddie Glasses from her bedside table and picked up an umbrella from the corner of her room and held it like Yu wielded his Katana in the TV (albeit, with less skill). She giggled as she saw herself in the mirror. The whole situation was hilarious, but she didn't want to stop pretending. It was almost as if she could actually fight Shadows now, that's the effect the jacket had on her. Maybe this was Yu's secret weapon? It gave him confidence?

She recalled the way Yu switched Persona mid-battle and mimicked his hand action

"Change!" she said as she tried to remember just how it was done, still giggling. She kept up the stupid little role-play she'd started.

"Izanagi!" she exclaimed while crushing an imaginary tarot card.

As soon as she released her fist, she saw her bedroom door open through the mirror.

"Hey, Rise, I think I left my jacket here. Do you kno…" Yu had stop talking and mentally reassess the situation he saw in front of him. There stood his girlfriend, wearing a loose fitting shirt, shorts and (most importantly) his school jacket. Not only that, she was waving around an umbrella with her glasses on. She just stared at him, eyes wide behind the pink glasses, like a deer caught in headlights.

Yu started laughing then. Not a chuckle or a smirk, a full-bodied laugh. He had to support himself on the door frame and clutch his chest he was laughing that much.

"This isn't what it looks like! I just wanted to see if it fit and then I started daydreaming and then… and then… and then you can shut up!" Rise said, on the verge of crocodile tears. She threw her glasses and umbrella onto the nearby bed and threw the jacket at her boyfriend.

"Sorry, Rise" Yu managed to stutter out after he calmed down a bit "The whole thing just caught me off guard. I never expected it is all"

"You didn't have to laugh that hard…" Rise mumbled as she turned her head away, only looking at Yu through the mirror.

"It wasn't that bad, I thought it was cute" Yu said as he moved over to rest his hands on Rise's shoulders. "Thanks, anyway…"

"For what?"

"I needed to laugh today." Yu said staring off at nothing again, as usual.

She'd completely forgotten about Nanako being on the verge of death. For the whole 30 seconds since Yu had entered the room to right now, neither of them had thought about the horrible situation she was in. A diversion was important in times of great peril...

"I'm glad I could make you laugh, Senpai… Even if it was my expense" Rise giggled, still looking at him through the mirror.

Yu smiled as he planted a kiss on Rise's cheek.

He put on the jacket Rise threw at him seconds ago. Rise finally turned around to look at him with it on. It looked infinitely better on him. His manly charms and maturity were accentuated somehow by one article of clothing.

"C'mon" He said, turning to Rise. "We should get going or we'll be late"

"OK, Senpai. Just wait outside for a second, I need to get dressed"

"In your clothes or mine?"

"You're impossible" Rise said, her expression turning to one of mock annoyance.

After Yu left the room to wait for Rise she locked the door.

She'd have to find a way to make him laugh every day he was away from Nanako. She wanted him to smile… Who else better to do it?


	7. Chapter 7 - Cosplaying

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 7- Cosplaying (Halloween)

xxx

A/N: Just to say, I'll be bending canon and reality a little bit here by making Halloween a bigger thing than it is in both Persona and Japan IRL. This is probably my least favourite so far… Just had a really hard time coming up with an idea for it :/ Hopefully it isn't _too_ terrible :/ Also, i have fixed all the spelling errors I could find. Dyslexia makes japanese names "Super Fun" to spell XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Ridiculous.

That was the only word that could describe virtually everyone at this little party Yosuke was throwing in his living room.

Earlier that week at school, Yosuke decided that everyone should get together this Halloween to "Take their minds off the case" and "Cut loose and have a little fun". In reality, he probably just wanted to see the girls in costumes. Why else would he make it a costume party?

It was stupid. There was no reason to be dressing up like this… Yu thought this as he was "admiring" his own costume. He didn't plan it, he just wore the one Yosuke threw at him during Junes' Failed Halloween event. It had a large black cape, a top hat, a flannel shirt and fake pointy teeth. Yu assumed that the costume meant to depict either a Vampire or a very eccentric cannibal. Either way, he looked insane.

Chie and Yukiko turned up together, the former as a Pumpkin that had sprouted legs and an attitude, the other as a Witch (A costume Yukiko obviously didn't plan herself since she was complaining all night about not being hideous enough to make a good witch.)

Kanji turned up in frayed clothes with fake stitches all over his arms and legs and a steel bolt through his head. The stitches were a fitting touch for the master seamstress of the group. The steel bolt was not.

It was Naoto, surprisingly that was wearing the most revealing costume. She came as a Cat… A somewhat promiscuous cat, at that, as the costume was showing off her stomach. She was visibly uncomfortable with this, so Yu had to theorise that the other girls made her wear it. He could see why they did, too. Naoto needed to show off her femininity every once in a while.

It was Yosuke, however, that took the prize for worst costume. Fake paw slippers, a headband with Dog ears, painted on whiskers and, what looked to be, the oldest pair of trousers in the world. The "ensemble" was complete with a Dog's collar, a shirt that mimicked an animal's chest and a rope around his waist.

Teddie was having fun at least. He was running around like it was his birthday or something. In fairness, he was the only one of the team that didn't look a complete moron. The Jack o' Lantern costume actually suited him a little.

Yu was the first to realise that one person was absent from the "Party". He always noticed when she wasn't around. Everything was a bit more lucid when she was nearby. Whether that was because of her innate ability as a navigator and support in the TV or because she was his girlfriend, he had no idea.

Yosuke was the one to speak up about the issue however.

"Hey, where's Rise?" He asked, to nobody in particular. Everyone turned to loo at Yu, as if he held the answer they all needed on a test.

"No idea" He told them "She said she would be running a little late though. Something about getting ready." Truth be told, Yu only scanned that text from Rise saying she'd be there after everyone else. He was too busy trying to think up excuses not to attend.

"If she comes in a super-awesome costume, I'm gonna be so jealous…" Chie said, her competitive spirit showing even in something as asinine as this.

"I think you're the only one that cares about costumes, Chie-Senpai" Kanji chimed in. "Why the hell am I wearing this crap again?!"

"I _told_ you, dude, it's a costume party" Yosuke said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

"Yeah but why? It's not even a party, we're just eating dinner in stupid outfits."

It was true, there was no banging music, flashing lights or anything anyone would associate with a party. Just 7 friends, eating sushi, looking absolutely ridiculous.

"It's low-key! It's not supposed to be like other parties. Besides, aren't you enjoying it just a _little_ bit?" Yosuke asked Kanji, punctuating his sentence with a wink while gesturing towards Naoto.

"Dude… shut up…" Kanji said meekly, turning his head away from the rest of the group.

"C'mon, admit it, Kanji. A part of you is enjoying this" Yosuke added slyly.

"Hey, leave him alone, Yosuke!" Chie snapped.

"Oh I'm sorry, I forgot I'm in the court of the pumpkin queen and not my own house!"

Everyone in the room let out a collective sigh. Even Yukiko. Apparently, even she had a limit on bearing Yosuke and Chie's sexual tension…

Before it could go any further, there was a knock at Yosuke's door.

"Am I allowed to answer the door to my house, your majesty?" Yosuke asked Chie sarcastically, bowing as he did so.

"The pumpkin queen allows it" Chie said, acting regal.

Another sigh from the group.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Yosuke said, slightly angry.

"I'll tell you later, just answer the door?" Yu asked… More ordered, actually. Out of everyone in the Team, if Yu asked someone to do something, they would probably do it with no hesitation. That's just the kind of person he was.

Within a few seconds, Yosuke ran in the room, practically falling over as he did so.

"DUDE!" He yelled, addressing Yu.

"What?"

"Rise's here!"

"Why are you so excited? You see her all the time"

"It's her costume!"

"What about it?"

"Just wait and see!"

"Yosuke, don't stare at Yu's girlfriend and say stuff like that!" Chie interrupted.

"Sh-Shut up, I wasn't staring…"

Yu had to admit, now he was kind of excited. The idea of seeing Rise in a cute Halloween costume might make this night slightly less terrible… At that moment Rise walked through the door, shadowing Yosuke.

"Hey everyone. Hey Senpai!" Rise said with a wave

Yosuke had massively undersold this spectacle to Yu. Rise was wearing a tri-corner hat, a loose white shirt and black leggings that hugged her legs very tightly. The whole thing was topped off by an eyepatch, large earrings, a huge belt and a fake sword on her hip.

She was the best looking pirate Yu had ever seen.

She made her way over to him and sat in his lap with her arms loosely around his neck, a position comfortable for her.

"So what were we talking about?"

"Chie and Yosuke" Yu replied to the newcomer, already doing wonders to improve his mood.

"What?!" Chie asked surprised. "There's no 'Chie and Yosuke'!"

"Sure there isn't, Chie-Senpai" Rise said with a wink and a giggle

From there the conversation turned to schoolwork, to drama in classes, to TV dramas and many other topics.

"Senpai?" Rise asked. It was pretty late, so at this point Rise had her head buried into Yu's neck trying to use him as a pillow. She looked up just for this exchange. "Can you take me home? I'm sleepy…" She was using all her energy to just stay awake.

"Long day?"

"Yeah… The store was pretty busy… And I had to run all over town to get this costume together."

"You couldn't have just got one like ours?"

"I would have, but you were gonna be here so I had to look good…" Rise said, barely retaining consciousness but still finding the energy to give her Senpai a kiss on the cheek

"You could have turned up in a garbage bag and I would have liked it… Honestly, this was pretty dull until you got here…"

Rise just smiled into his neck. She loved it when he talked like that. It reminded her of the time under the stars where it felt like they were the only ones left in the world…

"Let's get you home then, Kōhai" He said, rising to his feet with Rise following suit, hanging limply to his arm. The two lovers left the party in silence. Only Naoto noticed them leave and gave the two a curt nod.

Yu carried Rise every step of the way back to her store, shielding her beleaguered form from the night air. After a short while (and some fumbling from the fatigued Rise) they made it to her doorstep.

"Thanks for helping me home, Senpai." Rise smiled weakly. She was absolutely exhausted…

"Get some sleep, OK?" Yu said, kissing his girlfriend on the cheek as he turned to walk away.

"Wait!" Rise said when he was barely a foot away… "Stay here tonight, Senpai? Pleeeease? You make a really nice pillow…"

"You won't sleep if I stay over…" He sounded like Dojima telling Nanako she was up way past her bedtime.

"OK…" Rise groaned, genuinely disappointed. "G'night, Senpai… Love you…" She managed to slur as she walked into her house. All Yu could do was smile… Even when she was tired, she never failed to brighten his whole world.

Despite the terrible costume idea, it turned out to be a pretty good night.


	8. Chapter 8 - Shopping

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 8- Shopping

xxx

A/N: I need to stop using prompts in earlier chapters… Jeez… Hopefully this isn't terrible. Tomorrow's should be good (I actually have an idea for that XD). Again, seriously sorry about any mispellings last time D: Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"C'mon, Senpai!" Rise shouted to the young man behind her.

"I'm coming as fast as I can…" Yu managed to get out between exasperated breaths.

Yu Narukami hadn't expected his day to go like this. Rise had called him pretty much the second he opened his eyes in the morning.

"Good morning, Senpai!"

"Morning"

"You free today? I was hoping you could help me with something…"

"Rise, I told you that you really need to do your own schoolwork"

"No, nothing like that. Trust me, you're gonna enjoy this, Senpai… Please?!"

"Kay… I'll see you later."

"Yay! See you later, Senpai!"

Rise's comment about how Yu would enjoy this little outing piqued his interest, even if it was only a little. He needed a break from schoolwork anyway...

xxx

Apparently, "Help me with something" means "Carry my bags around Okina". The whole day, Rise treated him as a pack mule as he trudged around various stores. Even Rise's pleasant company wasn't doing anything to diffuse his irritation. She could have just been straight with him… Instead she got his hopes up.

"Senpai, are you tired? I'm sorry if I'm making you carry too much stuff." It wasn't all that much. Just some stuff Rise had picked up for the season.

"Yeah, it's fine." Yu added with a smile. He could live with it. They'd rest soon, no doubt (Rise would probably get hungry), and he could relax a little…

Yu noted that something was off with Rise today… She was walking just in front of him rather than at his side. She didn't want to hold his hand. More importantly, she wasn't smiling like always… What was it that had her so distant?

No sooner had Yu and Rise finished their little exchange, a guy approached the first year girl. He seemed like a normal enough guy. Clearly from the city.

"Um… Excuse me, but aren't you Risette?" Oh good. A fanboy. This was all the couple needed.

"No, sorry. That's not me." Rise said, tersely. "Come on, Senpai!"

Before Rise could move away however, the guy moved into her path.

"It's just you look and sound a lot like her… So I was wondering…"

"You're wrong." Rise was clearly done with this conversation. The guy still blocked her way.

"Are you sure you aren't Risette? I mean, you even have her body type…" The guy was looking increasingly creepier. Yu was about to open his mouth to say something, but Rise took the words right out of it.

"Back off, OK? I'm not Risette. Leave me alone, you creep."

With his pride wounded, the young man scuttled off with his tail in between his legs. Rise turned to look at her boyfriend.

"Thanks for helping me out there, by the way." Rise said, clearly still angry about the incident. Yu just put the bags down at his sides and instead placing his hands on Rise's waist.

"I was gonna but you handled that by yourself pretty well… You want me to track him down, we can yell at him some more?" Yu joked, a smile plastered on his face.

"… No, that's fine. I think he suffered enough" His joke clearly cheered her up just a little. But only a little... "Come on, Senpai, we've got one more place to visit" She said, taking one of the bags Yu was carrying a few moments ago.

"I don't mind carrying the bags, Rise."

"You've earned a lighter load by this point" Rise giggled.

xxx

The shop Yu found himself in was somewhat surprising to him. It was a normal department store, but they were in the men's section.

"Rise, why did we come here?"

"Because, I'm buying something for you, Senpai!" Her mood was still off. She was more excited, sure, but by this point Yu knew when she was faking it.

"Why?" Yu asked. He thought he was a pretty stylish guy. Did he really need a new outfit?

"I just want to get you something, that's all… No real reason." Rise said with an edge of irritation to her voice.

'Shit' Yu thought. It had hit him like a freight train. It had been 3 months since they started dating now and he completely forgot about it. What with The Case and everything, it just slipped his mind. He decided not to let Rise know he remembered however… Maybe he should play this differently…

"Cool. Hey, do you mind if I slink off for a bit? I need to use the restroom."

"Sure…" Rise said with a sigh.

He left Rise with the bags and a kiss on the cheek. He had to find her a gift. After running down the stairs, he scanned the women's section and found nothing she would like. He was about to give up when at the very back of the store, he found what he was looking for...

xxx

Rise wasn't angry that Yu had forgotten their anniversary. It had been a stressful time for the both of them so in truth she'd almost forgotten herself. She'd just hoped he would have remembered. He was such a dependable guy. Always looking out for everyone in the TV, maintaning and upgrading thier gear for them. WHy coulndn't he rememember this one thing? She found herself mulling over these thoughts as she was paying for a pair of gloves for Yu. It was getting to that season and all, so he might appreciate them. It wasn't much, but he would see the romantic gesture. She wanted to be the one he thought of when he was nice and warm.

As soon as she paid the attendant and moved away from the register, she saw her boyfriend holding a small plastic box in his right hand and beaming at her.

"Happy Anniversary, Rise." He said, and gestured the box towards her slightly.

"You did remember…" Rise gasped. This was a pleasant surprise.

The box didn't contain much. Just a small pair of earrings. They weren't fancy or particularly expensive. They did however have a special significance for the couple. When Yu and Rise first met, she thought he was a stalker following her through Junes. In reality he wanted to return the phone she dropped. They both remembered the first word that was exchanged between them: "Yummy" (In reference to the phone charm looking like food). These earrings depicted that same food, Dorayaki.

"Senpai, this is…"

"Is it too tacky?"

"I love it…" Rise said, trailing off.

Before Yu knew what was happening, Yu was being pulled into a deep, loving, kiss by his girlfriend. Right in the middle of a department store by many onlookers. Neither of them cared. After a short while, they separated.

"Yummy…" Rise said, with a wink…


	9. Chapter 9 - Hanging out with Friends

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 9 – Hanging out with friends

xxx

A/N: So when I saw this prompt I could only really envision one way it could go in my mind. I think it's 'aight XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"We should tell them soon."

"I don't want to yet! I want to keep this all to ourselves for a little while longer…"

Rise and Yu had been keeping their relationship secret from the rest of their friends for what seemed like ages. Initially, it was because Yu didn't want the rest of team to worry about their relationship while they were trying to deal with the case. Now however, it was more to do with they were worried about how their friends would react. They were a… eclectic group of personalities after all…

"Rise, the sooner we tell them, the sooner we get it over with."

"Yeah, but you can imagine what's gonna happen…"

It's true, he could. Kanji and Yukiko would probably be fine with it. Yukiko's pretty down to earth and Kanji just straight up doesn't care. Naoto might ask a couple of probing questions just so she can maintain the tabs she has on everyone. It was everyone else that he was worried about. Yosuke would probably congratulate him and then ask him a lot of perverted questions, which would lead to Chie yelling at him thus recommencing their tension filled banter. Teddie would of course be the worst. He'd act all wounded that Rise wasn't "Scoring with him" followed by calling his Sensei the coolest guy ever. He'd probably join in on Yosuke's questioning too… It'd be a car crash.

Yu didn't care though. He wanted them to know. He was sick of not being able to act natural around them when it came to Rise. He'd always have to make up excuses about when they arrived together and deny that they'd spent time alone together. That ended today.

"I'm telling them" He told Rise, firmly. He rarely had to put his foot down so he wasn't sure he was doing it right.

"I think we should but I'm just worried…" Rise said, a look of concern wrinkling her perfect features.

He put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer.

"It's gonna be fine" Yu said with a smile.

"Alright… I trust you, Leader" Rise laughed as the elevator to the food court finally reached its destination. The two pulled away from one another sharply as the door opened, just in case one someone saw them before they were ready to break the news.

Yu found this whole setup really odd. It was almost like he was introducing his children to their new stepmother…

He had to dispel that thought before he did it. It'd just be weird otherwise…

Yukiko was the only one there when Yu and Rise arrived. Her study supplies were splayed all over their usual table. Not unusual since they were running a revision session. She waved as she noticed the couple, which they returned.

"Hello, Yu-kun. Rise-chan" she said as they sat down in front of her. That was all she said before she went back to her notes. Yu wanted to wait until everyone was here before breaking the news. Rise was visibly quite worried, however. Her eyes were darting around as if looking for a chance to cut and run. Yu just placed a hand on her thigh underneath the table and smiled at her as if to say 'Everything's going to be fine'.

Over time, everyone else filed in. Naoto was next, on time as always. It wouldn't be surprising to Yu of he'd discovered her waiting around the corner choosing to come in at exactly the right moment. Chie and Yosuke came in together, mid argument. Teddie came out of nowhere saying that he was "on break" (Despite Yosuke saying he wasn't). Kanji was last and 10 minutes late as was typical. At least he apologized though…

"Guys" Rise spoke up after Kanji sat down. Apparently she just wanted to get it out of the way just as much as Yu did. Before she could even begin though…

"Hey, Yukiko? Would it be alright if I see your notes from the last class?" Yosuke interrupted.

"What happened to yours?"

"I… don't have any…"

"Why not?" Yukiko said angrily.

"I kinda, sorta fell asleep…"

"Then no"

"Come on! Please?! Do you want me to fail?"

"Guys!" Rise said, retaining everyone's attention for all of half a second.

"Yosuke, you only have yourself to blame for falling asleep in class." Chie said, joining in on Yukiko's argument.

"I'm with Chie-Senpai on this one, Yosuke-Senpai. Even I can stay awake in class" Kanji chimed in, adding his two cents.

"When you manage to turn up at all!" Yosuke exclaimed, getting angry.

"Yuki-Chan!" Teddie almost yelled. "You really should help Yosuke. He needs all the help he can get!"

After that, it descended into chaos. Yukiko was laughing like a hyena, Yosuke, Chie and Kanji were all still locked in heated debate and Teddie was playing devil's advocate.

"Guys!" Rise basically shouted, still being ignored. Yu hadn't taken the time to look at her since he was trying to see if he could diffuse this argument. He caught a glimpse of her now though. To his surprise, she was almost on the verge of tears.

Clearly this meant something to her, she was trying to tell the people she was closest to that she was in love with one of them. Getting interrupted because of such a stupid argument was obviously getting to her.

Yu wasn't going to stand for it.

"Guys." Yu said, calmly. The moment he spoke, the arguing stopped. Everyone turned to look at him. He'd taken advantage of their respect for him a few times but he made sure to do so only when it was vitally important.

"There's something you all need to know" Yu continued. He'd have to take over. He could tell just by looking at Rise that she wanted to burrow her face into his chest for comfort.

"Rise and I are dating. We've been together for a few months."

Stunned Silence.

That was not what he was expecting. Everyone was looking at Yu with a look of shock on their face. Even Naoto, who was probably the "Least animated" of their friends.

"Dude… Seriously?" Yosuke said, cutting through the silence like a knife.

"Yeah. Seriously" Yu said, almost aggressively. He didn't want there to be any ambiguity on this.

"Um…" Yukiko began, tentatively. Nobody really knew how to proceed. "Do you…"

"I love her." Yu interrupted, already knowing what she was going to say.

The air was heavy. The stepmother metaphor was really holding true right now.

"That's awesome, Senpai!" Kanji shouted enthusiastically. He could always be relied on to fix the mood.

"Yeah, I'm really happy for you guys!" Chie said, her tone mirroring Kanji's.

"I wish you both the best" Naoto smiled.

"You guys are really good together" Yukiko added.

"Dude, that's great!" Yosuke was behind him, clapping him on the back. "Rise, you really picked a winner here!"

"I know, Yosuke-Senpai..." Rise said, wrapping herself around Yu. A collective "Aww" could be heard from the group.

"Sensei! Does this mean that you and Rise-Chan are 'In love' like Chie-Chan and Yosuke?"

"What!?" Yosuke and Chie said in unison, the former moving in to shove Teddie.

Around them, the Investigation Team went on as normal. In the couple's tender embrace however, that wasn't the case.

"Thanks for taking charge, Senpai. I guess that's why you're the leader…"

"Sorry for making you stand there like an idiot for so long" Yu said, pulling her in closer.

"It's OK. At least it's out there." Rise stole a kiss from her Senpai, getting another "Aww" from the group around them.

"Love you, Senpai." She whispered in his ear as she pulled away from the hug.

"So… Yuki-Chan… Rise-Chan, Chie-Chan and Nao-Chan are spoken for and there's no other guys here… Maybe you should try "Scoring" with me? Eh?"

"No" Yukiko almost shouted.

"Wait, how am I spoken for?!" Naoto snapped out of her reverie.

"A certain blonde haired punk is rather smitten with you, Nao-chan!" Teddie teased.

"Oh, I get it… He's saying "Kanji, I'd love to get murdered in the Junes food court!"

The group didn't get much studying done…


	10. Chapter 10 - Wearing Animal Ears

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 10 – Wearing Animal Ears

xxx

A/N: So this one was _hard_. Thanks to the people that helped me with this. I might actually get it to work now :D Decided that this perspective might actually be really fun as well. Thought I'd try a simplistic writing style since it's all from Nanako's perspective. Might be nice to get a child's view on something as complicated as a relationship. Should be fun :) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Big Bro! Rise-Chan! Hurry up, it's almost on!" Nanako was bouncing off the walls.

Today was the day Magical Detective Loveline Season 2 started. Nanako was very excited, she loved this show so she'd been looking forward to the evening. She could barely even sit still throughout school during the day. The only thing that made her more excited was the fact that her Big Bro promised he'd watch it with her. She didn't hang out with Yu too much these days since he was busy with exams. He finished them today though and he promised to hang out with her. Yu had asked her if it was alright if Rise stayed and watched the show as well. How could Nanako refuse? She liked Rise a lot.

Currently, Yu was making popcorn and Rise was making coffee (With cream and sugar, just the way Nanako liked it).

"We're coming, Nanako-chan!" Rise said in a singsong voice. Seconds later she finished brought the coffee over to Nanako. "Careful, OK? It's really hot"

"OK! Big Bro? Are you almost done?"

"Yeah, it's done now" Yu placed the bowl of popcorn on the table and began dipping his hand into it.

"Um…" Nanako said to her Big Bro and her Idol. "You guys should wear these!" Nanako produced something out from under the table. The objects she revealed were two headbands, adorned with fake ears and a little top hat.

"They look just like the ones on Loveline's Magnifying Glass, huh?" Nanako said, raising a toy magnifying glass to point out the similarities between the ears and the detective's tool.

"Yeah, sure." Yu said, with no hesitation, as he placed the headband on his head.

Yu looked completely ridiculous with the false dog ears and hat. Rise couldn't help but laugh.

"Senpai! You look crazy!" She said between laughs, struggling to put her ears on.

"I think you look cool, Big Bro"

"We're on the case!" Yu said, mimicking the voice the tool made in the show. He never let his guard down in front of anyone besides Nanako so Rise just laughed even harder at the impression.

"Senpai! You're killing me, over here! You need to space that kind of material out" Rise almost fell off the couch with laughter.

"It's starting!" Nanako yelled excitedly, bouncing up and down.

As the theme song to the show started, Yu wrapped an arm around the hysterical Rise which seemed to calm her down.

The show was amazing. There was action and mystery and everything. Throughout the episode, Nanako kept turning back to ask Yu a question about something (Usually "Did you see that, Big Bro?" or words to that effect). Whenever she looked back, she saw he had his arm around Rise. While the credits were rolling, Nanako had one more question for him.

"Big Bro?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you love Rise-Chan"

The question caught Yu off guard a little. They obviously weren't expecting a question like that. Yu thought for a second before he answered.

"Yeah, Nanako. I love her"

"Do you love her the way Dad loved Mom?"

"Yeah" Yu smiled and pulled Rise a little closer.

Nanako had to wonder about this… Rise was really cool and she made her Big Bro happy. But what if what happened to her Mom happened to Rise-chan? Would Yu get upset like her Dad did? Would he get angrier like her Dad did? Would he start working late too? Would he leave her?

"Nanako-Chan? You OK?" Rise looked worried.

"Um… Yeah. That's good… Um, Rise-Chan?"

"Yeah?"

"You won't leave Big Bro, right?"

Rise looked a little upset at that. But her expression changed after Yu leaned over and whispered something to her. She looked a lot happier.

"No, Nanako-Chan. I'm not. I love your Big Bro so much." Rise said, planting a kiss on Yu's cheek.

"OK! That's good! I hope you and Big Bro'll be together forever!"

All three of the laughed.

"Come on, Nanako. It's bedtime"

"Aww… OK. Night, Rise-Chan…"

"Goodnight, Nanako-Chan!"

After Yu took Nanako to bed, he kissed her on the forehead

"Goodnight, Nanako. Love you."

"Love you, Big Bro" Nanako said, sleepily. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she felt tired, so went to sleep straight away.

xxx

Yu descended down the stairs back to his awaiting girlfriend. She sat there under a large blanket watching the news to get the weather report. She was even scrawling it down on a notepad that (He assumed) she bought with her. As he re-entered the living room, her head turned and her features lightened.

"Hey" she said with a smile. He made his way over to her, sat back down and kissed her lightly. "She get to sleep OK?"

"Yeah, she must have tired herself out"

"She really likes that show, huh?" Rise said, pulling the headband off her head and placed it on the table. Yu had completely forgotten he was wearing his. He took it off and put it down next to Rise's.

"Yeah, it's one of the only things she gets _really_ excited about" Yu joked.

"Sorry for acting weird when she asked about me leaving. I didn't even think that she might be a little worried after everything with her mom…"

"It's alright, I don't think she noticed." Yu said, beaming at his girlfriend.

"Well that's virtually everyone's approval" she said, returning the smile.

"Except Dojima-San's… And your grandma's…"

"She'll be fine with it. She thinks you're an 'Upstanding young man'" Rise giggled. "Thanks for asking me here today, Senpai. I had a lot of fun. It was almost like looking after our own kid for a night." She moved closer as she brought that up so that he could rest his chin on her head. "I can't wait to do that for real with you…"

"We've been dating for 3 months, Rise, don't go crazy."

The couple laughed together. It was a simple one, no special meaning behind it. It was just a way to punctuate a perfect evening.

And they did it while looking like bulldogs.


	11. Chapter 11 - Wearing Kigurimis

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 11 – Wearing Kigurumis

xxx

A/N: So for anyone who's unaware, Kigurumis are basically onesies. That's literally the only way to describe them XD Sorry this one isn't very long (or good XD), by the way. There's only so much you can do with this prompt. Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Senpai! Please put it on, you'll like it."

"It looks kind of…"

"Adorable? Too cute for words? Amazing?"

"I was going to go with ridiculous."

Ridiculous. That was a word that could basically sum up Yu Narukami's life at the moment. Rise had invited him over to help with her English work. It was a subject he was pretty good at, so he had no problem helping out his girlfriend where she was struggling. They'd probably get dinner afterwards, make a day of it. He wasn't expecting the gift that he was being presented.

It was a kigurumi. Specifically, one that resembled a grey tabby cat. Yu never really wanted to wear one of these. It wasn't that he hated them, just that the interest to dress up as a cat had never grasped a hold of him as it had most other teenagers… Including his girlfriend.

Rise was wearing one too. Hers shared an appearance with a black cat (Because of course she bought matching ones). On Rise, it looked more endearing than anything Yu could imagine. The hood over her head along with the loose fit and the sleeves slightly longer than her arms reminded him of the time he wore her jacket but somehow more adorable.

Yu knew that if he wore it, however, he'd look more awkward than cute.

"C'mon, Senpai. Pleeeeease!" Rise pleaded, bouncing up and down a little as she did so. God, she was cute… He had to relent at that.

"Fine."

"Yay! Thank you, Senpai!" she tackled him into a hug before he even finished agreeing. Yu started putting on the kugurimi but before he could finish…

"Senpai? Are you just gonna wear it over your clothes?"

"Yeah, that's the plan. Why?"

"Well…" Rise shifted her weight from foot to foot, embarrassed. "I'm not wearing anything under mine… so…" she took her eyes off the floor and looked to her boyfriend, silently pleading with him with her big brown eyes. Again, she killed his resolve with cuteness.

"You're dangerous, Rise. It's your eyes." Yu said as he slinked off to the bathroom to change.

xxx

Moments later, Yu returned, dressed as a cat.

"Aww, Senpai, you look cute!" Rise squealed.

He kind of did, actually (Despite his expectations). It wasn't as short on him as he thought it would be and the colour complemented his eyes and hair very well. His manly stoicism was gone, but he found there was a certain charm to this outfit.

"You happy now?" Yu asked his girlfriend

"Yep!" Rise smiled. She was in an inordinately good mood, despite now having to work on her most hated subject. This was something she remembered only now.

"Um… Do we have to work right away Senpai?"

"If we don't, you'll never get anything done."

"I guess… But I only have the one chair in my room…" Rise gestured over to her desk and, true enough, there was only the one chair. She was determined to get out of this.

"So? I'll grab a chair from downstairs."

"Or, we could just share this one…" Rise broke out her cute face and stared at the floor yet again.

"You're determined to not do this English aren't you?"

"I have no idea what you're taking about, Senpai…" Rise feigned ignorance. If she gave her boyfriend an inch, he'd take a mile.

That was when Yu hatched a plan.

"Tell you what. You do the first question on the worksheet and we'll share the chair. Do the second and we'll move to the bed."

Rise seriously considered the proposal. If doing her homework was the only way she'd get to snuggle with her Senpai, that's what she'd have to do…

"Alright, fine, you win, Senpai…" She said, still trying to act cool. She was, however, bristling with excitement on the inside.

The questions that she had been set were actually quite easy. With only a little help from Yu, she sitting in his lap in moments. A few minutes after that and the couple had moved their study session to Rise's bed.

"So, what do I get if I do the third and fourth questions, Senpai?" Rise asked, her eyes sparkling with anticipation

"Aside from satisfaction that you learned something? I'll undo one of the buttons on this thing" Yu said, gesturing to his kigurumi. It only had 4 buttons. Rise's heart was pounding.

She set to work on the questions. A little harder but after about half an hour she'd finished question three, four and five. Yu's chest was pretty much on full display, if she could just finish question six…

"Wait, where's question six?" Rise asked, to nobody in particular.

"Is there only five questions? Darn. Guess you won't get to see me with no clothes on…" Yu said sarcastically, flashing a knowing smile at Rise.

"You knew the whole time!?" Rise pouted, throwing a cushion at Yu which hit him square in the face. "I can't believe you exploited me like that, Senpai!" She started shouting, just a little. She wanted to make a show of this.

"_I_ can't believe you fell for it, in all honesty." Yu scoffed a little.

"You're the worst" Rise said as she put her arms over her chest and puffed out her cheeks. She still looked cute, even when she was angry. Yu leaned over and placed a kiss on her lips which she happily leaned into. She can't have been that upset…

"I promise not to manipulate you like that again, but you have to start actually doing your work, OK?" Yu asked, a hand on Rise's shoulder.

"Alright, Senpai… But you have to promise something else."

"What's that?"

"Wear the kigurumi to all of our study sessions. I'll wear mine too."

Yu considered it for only a moment. That wasn't a big ask, and if he was chastising her for not doing work when she got distracted, then it wouldn't exactly hurt matters…

"Promise." Yu said, as he pulled Rise in for one more kiss.


	12. Chapter 12 - Making Out

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her<em>

Day 12 – Making Out

xxx

A/N: Ah good, another prompt where I can use lots of flowery language. 'Cept its more hawt XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Today had marked a bad day for the team. Trust had been broken, pride had been wounded and bruises had been made.

It was the night just after the Cultural Festival and the whole Team, including Nanako, stayed at the Amagi Inn afterwards. The sentiment was a nice one. They'd use the baths, have a nice dinner and stay in a swanky inn.

The reality was anything but.

There was a mix up with the baths. The girls had stayed in there a little too long and as the bath times changed to the guys turn they were assaulted with various objects. Normally, the guys would have been in the right, perfectly justified.

They _would_ have been, if Yosuke, Teddie and (to a lesser extent) Kanji hadn't insisted on seeing all they could of the girls before they had to leave. As such, they'd sustained numerous wounds and the girls probably wouldn't be talking to them for the rest of the night. Yu had to fix that, even if only a little.

He made his way to the girl's room and knocked on the door. No response.

"Hey, it's Yu. Can I come in, I think we need to talk about what happened."

There was a long pause before finally, a melodic tone rang through to hi. Even if it did have an edge of irritation to it.

"Yeah, come in, Senpai" He heard Rise say.

That was all the permission he needed.

The scene on the other side of the door was truly something to behold. There was his girlfriend sitting on the bed, wearing little else other than a T-shirt a couple of sizes too big for her (Which she stole from Yu) and some socks. Her arms were folded across her chest and she was facing away from him.

"What do you want?" Rise asked. She seriously wasn't happy. There was no playful teasing here, just annoyance. He'd have to play this carefully…

"I want to apologize for what happened out there. We should have double checked first."

"It's OK, Senpai. We got the times wrong so it wasn't your fault" Rise said, still livid.

Yu walked over to where she was sitting and put an arm around her

"So why are you still angry?"

"Just the guys trying to stare at me… God. I'm so embarrassed…"

Despite being a megastar in her own circles. Rise wasn't one to show everything off to everyone, she was a teenage girl after all. However, the guys were all Teenage guys, too.

"They just got caught up in the moment, that's all."

"I guess..." Rise leaned into his arm a little more. "Thanks for getting everyone out of there, by the way."

"Thank _you_ for the bruises."

"Yeah, my aim is pretty deadly, huh?" Rise laughed. "Thanks for coming along, Senpai. Just being with you cheers me up a bit."

Yu's heart was beating faster. Something was in the air. Maybe it was the events that had transpired earlier in the evening, maybe it was just the right mood but it made Yu's chest tighten, ever so slightly.

Apparently, Rise felt it too as she moved her head up to Yu's and placed her lips onto his. The magic was still there. Every time they kissed, both of them felt their heart rate quicken. The feeling of isolation with nobody in the world but their other, perfect, person still lingered. Neither wanted to pull away, neither wanted to stop. Ever.

This time, however, there was something else hanging over them. Yu adjusted his grip on Rise, using both arms to pull her further into the kiss. Rise's arms found a new position around Yu's neck. There was more movement than before, more passion.

The positon was slightly uncomfortable. Rise had to crane her neck just to reach her mark. She decided to fall back onto the bed. Yu followed her instinctively, not breaking the kiss. It continued, unrelenting. No sound could be heard other than the light chapping of the young couple's lips.

Rise moved her mouth from Yu's to his neck, freeing up his mouth to speak. He didn't want to however. Speaking might cheapen the moment. He just did as Rise did and started to kiss her neck. It was at that point he got hit with a strong, feminine scent. Her perfume. She even _smelled_ perfect. Rise seemed to take charge again as she brought the kiss back to Yu's lips, her mouth open now. She ran her tongue along Yu's mouth to request entrance.

Who was he to say no?

Their tongue's explored one another's mouths while caressing the foreign muscle in their mouth. Somehow, this came naturally to both Yu and Rise. As if it was something they were meant to do.

Rise moaned into the kiss. Her hands moving from Yu's neck to his waist to his back, never ceasing. She wanted this to be a tactile experience. Her leg wrapped around her Senpai's waist, pulling him even deeper into the kiss.

Yu was going on instinct at this point, his right hand long since moved on from Rise's waist and found it's way to her thigh. He squeezed. She moaned. His errant hand moved all over Rise's body. Her arms, her waist again, her face. Nowhere was safe.

Rise's hands moved yet again, this time to Yu's shirt. She began unbuttoning it, bit by bit. She wanted to feel his skin on hers. She needed that point of contact. Every second she spent fumbling with the shirt was torturous to her. Finally, she got through to his chest and ran her hands over it. What she found surprised her, so much so, she broke the kiss. Yu continued, however, on her neck.

"Senpai, when did you get so toned?" His muscles were hardly anything to write home about, but they had a lot more definition now. Yu moved his lips half an inch away from Rise's neck simply to say "Must be all the running around we do" before crashing his lips into Rise yet again.

After Rise cast his shirt to the floor, she explored every inch of her boyfriend's torso with her hands and his mouth with her tongue.

His hands continued to wander from Rise's thigh, and started to move higher. He began to snake his hand underneath her t-shirt. She tensed under his touch on her hips but relaxed again within seconds. His hand disappeared completely under her shirt, over her stomach…

"We should apologize to the guys…"

Yu pulled his lips away from Rise with breakneck speed.

"What the hell was that?"

As if they knew what the young couple was doing, the door swung open. In the doorframe stood the other girls (Sans Nanako).

"What the hell are you guys doing?!" Yelled Chie, averting her eyes. Yukiko and Naoto did the same, both of them developing a full blush.

"Will you keep it down, Chie-Senpai? You're gonna wake someone up." Rise said, handling the situation like a pro. "You should get going, Yu. I'll see you later" Rise smiled before she threw Yu his shirt which he hastily put on.

Rise saw him out of the girl's room with a quick kiss on the cheek and a wave.

Yu looked back before the door was closed. He saw three faces filled with shock and one filled with love and warmth.

After he was shut out of the room, he stood there for a short while to button up the shirt which had been so wantonly discarded. He heard some shouting from the other side.

"What the heck were you doing?! Did you forget he was peeping at us?" Chie yelled, still furious.

"You really shouldn't have been doing something like that, Rise-chan" Naoto said, with some irritation.

"I know that you're dating him, Rise-chan, but you need to keep yourself under control. We are _not_ that kind of inn…" Yukiko said, more with worry than with anger.

Yu knew Rise wouldn't care about the berating she was receiving from her friends. She wouldn't be angry or upset or aggressive.

She would just be smiling. Smiling a smile of pure bliss.


	13. Chapter 13 - Eating Ice Cream

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 13 – Eating Ice Cream

xxx

A/N: Cuteness intensifies. I thought I'd go back a little. Enjoy just these two being cute and stuff. Watch as their virgining affection blossoms XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Umm… Chocolate!" Nanako said excitedly.

Yu had offered to take Nanako out for ice cream. It was the middle of summer, he couldn't let her just sit around the house not doing anything. His idea to take her for a little day out had turned out to be a pretty good one. They went to Samegawa, got Steak Skewers and now they were getting ice cream.

As Nanako smiled at the simple trip, Yu became calmer. She was optimistic, sure, but she seemed quite reserved. It was nice to see her "cut loose" like this.

Yu bought Nanako the flavour she asked for and Vanilla for himself. They sat on a bench to while away a few more hours while eating their ice cream.

"Hey Big Bro? Do you like living here?" Nanako asked.

"Yeah, I like it a lot. It's so much quieter than the city" There were other reasons he liked it here. He actually got talked to when he got home, for one thing. Yu's parents weren't around all that often so he loved just the casual conversation he got when he walked through the door in the evening. There was also the fact he'd made close-knit friendships here. He had friends back in the city, sure, but none quite as memorable or important to him as the ones he'd made here. He wouldn't tell Nanako this, however. Keep it simple.

"That's good" Nanako smiled.

As the two continued their idle conversation, Yu saw someone familiar walking towards them. It was the girl they'd saved not a week ago, Rise Kujikawa. She was wearing different clothes but Yu would recognise her distinctive hair and beauty anywhere.

"I'll be right back, don't move." Yu said to Nanako as he stood up and walked over to the high school girl

She noticed him way before he even said anything to her "Oh, hey there. Yu-san, right?"

"Yu's fine. You feeling better?" Yu asked. He was worried. She'd gone through quite the ordeal so her condition was paramount in his mind right now.

"I'm getting there." She laughed softly. "Who's that girl you're with?" She'd obviously noticed Nanako who was sitting there, slack-jawed.

"That's my sister. You want to join us? We're having Ice Cream" Yu said as he gestured to the treat in his hand.

"Sure." Rise said with a smile. "Um… Where's the best place for Ice Cream around here, anyway?"

"I'll get it for you, what flavour do you want?"

"Umm… Mint?"

"OK, I'll be right back. Can you keep Nanako company?"

"Sure."

Rise moved over to the bench and took Yu's place next to Nanako, smiling warmly at the younger girl.

"Hi there."

"Umm… Hi" Nanako replied, meekly. This was Risette. _THE_ Risette talking to her. What should she say?

In the end, Nanako just sat there in slightly awkward silence until Yu returned. When he did, he kicked himself for being such an idiot. Of course Nanako would retreat at the presence of the person she idolized the most. He handed Rise her ice cream and tried to fix the situation… God knows how he'll do that, but he'd figure it out as he went along.

"So, Nanako. You enjoy our outing today?"

"Yeah, it was fun… Thanks, Big Bro" She said, shyly in the presence of Rise. The older girl clearly noticed, so much so she had to say something to Yu.

"Is she always like this?" Rise said in hushed tones.

"No" Yu mirrored Rise's volume "She's a fan of yours. It completely slipped my mind."

"Ah" Rise exclaimed "Don't worry, I got this" Was the last thing she said before turning back to Nanako. "So Nanako…" Rise began "What are you studying at school?"

"Lots of stuff…"

"Cool. What's your favourite?"

"Umm…" Nanako put a lot of thought into this. It was almost as if she was giving evidence during a trial. She didn't want to lie to Risette... "I really like Math"

"Awesome. I suck at Math" Rise laughed. It seemed to ease Nanako slightly

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm not very good at it…"

Just like that, Rise had removed Nanako's tension. After about another five minutes, Nanako was back to her peppy self. The three just sat there eating their sweet treats and chatting. The day seemed to go by a lot faster because before long, they'd finished their ice creams and it was getting dark.

"Hey, Nanako, we should be getting back. Your dad'll kill me otherwise…" Nanako and Yu stood up from their seat with the former grasping the latter's hand tightly.

"OK, Big Bro." Nanako said, smiling. She'd clearly enjoyed this little excursion. "See you later, Rise-chan!"

"G'night, Nanako-chan." Rise smiled. "Oh, Yu, before you go, you go to Yasogami High, right?"

"Yeah, why?" Yu asked

"I'm just wondering is all. See you 'round" Rise punctuated her words with that warm smile from before. There was something about this girl. Looking at her now, Yu could see that. There was something deeper to her that she wasn't letting on. He could tell, just from this short afternoon he'd spent with her that she was a girl that cared, a girl that looked out for everyone and a girl he respected. He looked forward to getting to know her better…

"Anyway, we should head off. See you later, Rise-san."

"Rise's fine" she giggled again. He took note of how cute she was when she did that…

"See you later, Rise-chan!" Nanako cried as she walked away with her Big Bro.

This left Rise alone on the bench. She couldn't help but notice she really enjoyed hanging out with the man who saved her life and his sister. He was a great guy. He took the time to talk to her without even bringing up her fame… Hell, he actually forgot about it. He treated her just like any other, normal girl. He was dependable too. The way he acted in the TV was all she needed to see as an example of that… He was pretty easy on the eyes too…

"Where the hell did _that_ come from?" Rise wondered out loud at the manifestation of that last thought.

The day turned out to be more eventful than either Yu or Rise had planned…


	14. Chapter 14 - Genderswapped

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 14- Genderswapped

xxx

A/N: Right, so first off: Apologies for No Chapters the last couple of days. Weekends are always really busy for me XD To combat this, I'm writing all of the week's chapters in one day (Time off college means extra shifts at work means less motivation to write :/). Another reason that this one in particular isn't that great is because I didn't have too many ideas for it. Like what can I possibly do for it besides what I've got? This is as much a creative writing exercise for me as it is entertainment for you guys :) Anyway, actual summary. AU to the max. Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"You… You're not me!"

Yuka Narukami's year thus far had been… odd, to say the very least. She could accept moving in with her Uncle and Cousin for a year while her parents worked. That was an ordinary thing that happens. She could accept the eccentric group of friends she had accrued the last couple of months too. However, Diving into television sets to save people from getting killed by their inner selves, summoning manifestations of one's psyche to defeat monsters and solving a murder was not the way she was expecting to spend her formative years.

To be fair, she also hadn't expected to meet Riku Kujikawa either. Needless to say, he was probably reconsidering his life up to this point too. The TV Personality gig was pretty normal… Well, relatively speaking anyway. Not many kids win a contest to appear on TV and then skyrocket to adolescent stardom in a few short months. It was the last week when things started getting crazy for him…

xxx

He was sick of it. Sick of the constant attention, sick of the fake personality he had to put on for the public, sick of the 150 hour work weeks. He needed time off. They wouldn't let him, but he needed it. So a conference was called and Riku announced that he'd be taking a break from show business. He was so tired. There were questions, of course there were questions. Things about his health and where he was going. He couldn't care less at this point. He just wanted out.

In fairness, he got what he wanted. The next day, Riku was being driven to his grandmother's house in Inaba. He loved coming here as a kid. Other kids actually wanted to talk to him rather than ignored him like they did back home. It was nice here… However, the return trip was anything but. Accosted by Fans and the Police. There was no end to the endless stream of people trying to get a look at him. When _they_ walked in however, that's when things started to get interesting…

There were three of them. A big guy with bleached blonde hair and a serious attitude, a guy with spikey hair and a stupid grin on his face (Obviously a fan). And of course, _she_ was there.

On that first meeting, Riku could barely look Yuka in the face. The way she carried herself, the way she acted. He noticed them. He could tell, in just those few short seconds, that she was mature, dependable and a natural leader… It didn't hurt that she was incredibly attractive. Hopefully they'd meet each other again.

Yuka wanted to see him again as well. Despite Yosuke's inane ramblings about how cool he was and how he wished he was like him distracting her, Yuka took note of the slightly younger guy's manner.

That meeting wasn't their last. Sadly, the next took place on the field of battle…

xxx

"It's gonna change!" Yosuke shouted out, pointing towards the stage where Riku was sitting, exhausted. His Shadowy double however, was anything but. He was laughing manically and brimming with power. Seconds later, a bright flash. The Shadow's form had changed into something that vaguely resembled the person it once looked like. The only feature that one could defiantly say was Riku's was the hair. Everything else was garish clashes of colour, noise and metal. It was a grotesque creature… And it was part of Riku.

"I am a shadow… The true self" It began. "For my guests in the front row, I'll give you extra special, extra intense service!"

Before the shadow could continue, Yuka acted. Summoning her Persona as her friends did the same… This would be a tough one.

xxx

The battle was arduous but eventually, Riku's shadow was subdued. Teddie had almost killed himself trying to do it, but it was over.

While her friends were celebrating a victory well deserved, Yuka made her way over to Riku. He was lying on his back, eyes shut tight. She smiled as she leaned down to cradle his head and chest in her arms… To sit him upright. That was the only reason. Right?

His eyes flickered open. Once they did, he scanned the room. The monster had gone and had been replaced by his double once again. There was another presence though. The girl from before.

"Hey" she said. "Are you alright? Can you get up?"

He said nothing for just a few moments as he stared into her piercing grey eyes, accentuated by her mature beauty.

"Yeah… I'm alright…" He stood and made his way towards his shadow. Knowing what he had to do. He was scared to admit it, but this thing was part of him. He had to accept that.

Yuka could only smile. The guy knew better than anyone they'd met thus far that he had to acknowledge the Shadow.

Hopefully, they'd meet again. And hopefully there'd be less giant multi-coloured escorts and bears almost dying when they did so.


	15. Chapter 15 - Wearing different clothes

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 15- Different Style of Clothing

xxx

A/N: Halfway already? 0_0 That has gone pretty damn fast, I'm ngl XD This one was pretty difficult to do since I'm not a particularly fashion conscious person. As such, I had literally no idea what to do for this. Conveniently, there's no prompt for kimonos and there's an even in game in which one is worn. Just have to fluff it up even more :) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

The air around him was bitingly cold. He really should have dressed just a little warmer…

It was New Year's Day. The night before, the whole Investigation Team went to the festival. They had a lot of fun, despite the other guys whining all night about the girl's lack of kimonos. They only had themselves to blame, really. They shouldn't have gotten so excited about it. Regardless, the team rang in the New Year as friends. Something Yu hadn't done before. Usually he spent New Year alone since his parents were working for a bonus or something. The holiday never held much significance for him... Until last night, at any rate.

He was barely dressed on New Year's Day when his phone started buzzing. He had a few messages. Kou, Daisuke, Naoki, Yumi and Ai all sent him New Year's greetings. He'd even got a message from his parents. It was the text right at the top of the list, the one sent most recently that grabbed his attention the most, however.

"Happy New Year, Senpai! V(^O^)V We should do tonnes of stuff together this year, too! Let's pay our first visit to the shrine today! Of course, since it's just the two of us, I'll dress up ;)"

Rise, obviously. She was getting better. She'd phased out the numbers in her texts now. Of course, Teddie was still a massive issue… Regardless, Yu shot back with a short confirmation and put on his winter clothes.

She was running a little late. It was getting to him too since Yu's winter clothes weren't all that warm. Yeah, they were OK, but his hands were still pretty chilly…

"Senpaaaai!" He heard from behind him. Suddenly, he felt a whole lot warmer. As he turned around, he saw quite a sight…

Rise was walking towards him, as promised. When she said she'd dress up, he had no idea she'd look as good as she did. Rise wore an elegant sky blue kimono, adorned with white flowers. Her hair was done differently with an accessory to match her outfit. The whole thing was tied together with a pink sash. She looked different. Yu didn't think there was anything wrong with that it just shocked him how one outfit completely changed his perception of her. Normally, the word he'd use to describe his girlfriend would be "cute". The word he'd use now however, would be "Radiant".

"I look pretty good even in something like this, don't I?" She'd obviously seen him eyeing her outfit. "What are your impressions?"

Yu didn't know what to say. So many different words were going through his mind. Gorgeous? Amazing? Stunning?

"You look beautiful…" Was all he could manage.

"Aren't I breath-taking?" Rise said "I'm glad you like it, Senpai" Rise smiled.

As they made their way into the shrine, all Yu could think about was Rise's outfit. It left quite the impression on him. They chatted on the way up to the offertory box. Rise made a comment about how she thought it was weird how she was really nervous getting dressed up for him but not for the stage and how all she was thinking about while getting ready was her boyfriend.

"What are you going to wish for, Senpai?" Rise asked, her face slightly red from a combination of the cold and her romantic comments. "I'm going to wish that both of us are happy forever…" It was a simple wish, one a child might make even, but there was a sincerity behind it. She really wanted nothing more from her New Year's wish to be happy and for her Senpai to share that happiness with her.

"I'll wish for that too" Yu smiled as he threw some money into the box and put his hands together in prayer. For a few moments there was silence.

Afterwards, Rise had an idea. "Senpai, have you drawn the fortunes here before? Grandma says you can get bad ones here even on New Year's"

"No, I haven't… You want to?" Yu asked

"Sure" Rise said with a smile.

The box of omikuji was somehow daunting to Yu. He wasn't particularly superstitious or even religious. Somehow though, the small pieces of paper in the box filled him with a sense of dread… Maybe it was because if Yu got one that said "Your relationship is doomed" or something, Rise would get upset… Then he'd have to console her, which means cuddling which could go further…

Yu was thinking about these somewhat impure thoughts as he pulled his fortune from the box. To his great surprise it said "Great Blessing".

"That's great, Senpai! I got a great blessing too so hopefully our year together will be awesome!" Rise said excitedly. It was a complete fluke, but it made Rise happy so all Yu could do was smile as he slipped the piece of paper into his pocket.

After their short visit to the shrine, Rise suggested that the two of them go somewhere

"What about your place?" Yu asked. It was closer to the shrine that Dojima's house and Yu desperately wanted out of the cold.

"OK, it's nearby so that's not a bad idea." Rise said "My grandma's out visiting a friend right now so…" Rise trailed off slightly before gasping "If you're thinking of something naughty right now, raise your hand!"

Rise raised her hand slowly, blushing madly and staring at the floor the whole time. She looked up from her staring contest with the floor to Yu whose hands remained firmly in his pockets.

"Huh?! Just me?"

"Just you" Yu chuckled. Apparently, Rise was just as bad as him when it came to impure thoughts.

"Fine, we're going to Junes." Rise said as she puffed out her cheeks.

"Not your place?"

"Nope, you should have raised your hand."

Rise moved to Yu's side and took his hand in hers.

The cold stopped bothering him altogether.


	16. Chapter 16 - Morning Rituals

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 16- Morning Rituals

xxx

A/N: Oh my god, a chapter with actual fluff in it! :D I know the last couple of chapters weren't that fluffy but sometimes, the prompts do that (Especially Genderswapped, I mean good lord XD). From now on though, super fluffy until Day 23. I may need some help on that one, actually. The prompt for it is "Arguing" and I can't for the life of me think what these two could argue about. Yu's not the type to argue about anything so… Ideas are very welcome indeed :) Also, ideas on what I should do after this? I was thinking about branching into some P3 stuff but again, ideas are welcome :) Drop a PM or review or something. That gets my spiel out of the way XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Hey, wake up"

Yu opened his eyes slowly. The world came back into focus. It was morning now, however. In addition, he was in a place that was somewhat foreign to him. He wasn't in his room, that's for sure. This one was different. It was more… effeminate.

Before he knew what was going on, a face loomed over him. A face that was somehow still naturally beautiful despite having a mess of hair and no makeup.

"C'mon, wake up" Rise said as she poked her Senpai's cheek in an attempt to get him to rise.

"I'm up, you don't have to poke me…" Yu said. "Hey"

"Hey" she smiled

"You sleep OK?"

"Yeah… You kicked me once or twice though" She giggled. Apparently it didn't bother her.

"Sorry" he chuckled along with her.

Yu stayed at Rise's place for the first time last night. It was a great night too, they ate a nice dinner and watched a movie. Yu even got the chance to chat with Rise's grandmother about various things. Nothing happened when they went to bed, just sleep. It was still special for the couple however.

"We should start getting ready for school…" Yu said as he climbed out of bed giving Rise a quick peck on the cheek as he did so "Mind if I use your shower? I'll only be a couple of minutes."

"Sure, I usually get breakfast before I shower anyway so go right ahead. I'll cook you up a great breakfast, Senpai!" Rise beamed with pride.

A feeling of dread overcame Yu.

"Actually, you want me to cook breakfast?" Yu said.

Rise tapped her finger on her chin as she thought about Yu's proposition. After a few moments, she relented.

"OK" She smiled. "Can you fry up some eggs?"

"Sure, I'll have it done by the time you're done showering." Yu said, departing from Rise's bedroom in his pyjamas.

As Yu made his way down the stairs to Rise's kitchen, he reflected on that little exchange they just shared. It was almost as if they were a married couple, "arguing" about stupid little, almost mundane things. It was a refreshing change of pace. Yu held the quiet moments in his life close to his heart and that brief conversation he just shared with the girl he loved most would be one he'd remember. Even if it was about showers and eggs.

The moment Yu had cracked the eggs into a pan and put some bread under the grill he heard the water come on upstairs, signifying the beginning of Rise's shower. After about 10 minutes, breakfast was ready and Rise had descended from upstairs, hair still wet and the neck of her pyjama top slightly damp because of it.

"This is really good, Senpai!" Rise exclaimed after swallowing her food.

"I thought we were way past 'Senpai' now?" Yu asked raising an eyebrow. He didn't object to being called "Senpai" but it just hit his ear wrong. They were dating, surely a little more informality was appropriate?

"But it's so much better!" Rise said defensively. "It feels weird to call you 'Yu-kun'" she mock shuddered when the words left her mouth. "Besides you're so… Mature? I guess? It just feels right, y'know?"

"Whatever, _kōhai__" _Yu said, putting extra stress on the slightly demeaning honorific.

"Stop that!" Rise said, play acting hurt again.

"Anyway, I'm going to shower." Yu rose from the table and put his plate in the sink. He kissed Rise on the cheek as he left the room.

_xxx_

Shortly after Rise finished her breakfast, she had to get ready. She couldn't go anywhere looking like this. It wasn't a matter of looking good just… presentable. Soon after she got to her room she sat down in front of the full length mirror and set about her beauty regime. Dry, comb and style her hair. Select and apply appropriate makeup (not too much, just enough to accentuate her features). All that remained was to get dressed…

It was at that moment her boyfriend decided to walk in. Luckily (For the sake of Rise and Yu) she hadn't started undressing yet.

"Hey" he said as he grabbed his school uniform from the back of the chair sitting at Rise's somewhat unused desk.

"You should have knocked, I was about to start getting changed" Rise reprimanded. This felt odd to both her and her boyfriend. She very rarely had to chastise him for anything. The unfamiliarity of the remark caused them both to laugh softly.

Finally, the pair finished their ablutions. Yu only had to spray on some deodorant and put his uniform on and he was ready. Rise (after nipping into the bathroom to change away from Yu and his errant eyes) quickly applied some perfume and quickly gave herself a once-over to make sure she looked perfect. After all that the young couple walked to school, hand in hand.

"Hey, Senpai?" Rise asked, squeezing his hand to get his attention.

"Yes, _Kōhai?" _Yu was still insisting on the nickname

"I thought I told you to stop that…" Rise sighed before continuing "Today was kinda weird, huh?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well… It was almost like we were living together or something…" Rise mused before quickly adding "It wasn't a bad thing! I really liked it! It felt… special…"

The fact that Rise had managed to pick up on it too meant Yu definitely wasn't imagining things. Their relationship was moving forward in a really good way. Yu just smiled at his girlfriend.

"I noticed that too. I guess that means we're growing or something."

"Yeah! It's like, we're not just kids messing around with each other. There's…" Before Rise continued, she adjusted her grip. Instead of holding her Senpai's hand she wrapped her arms around one of his before finishing her thought. "More to it now…"

The two continued their walk to school in silence, simply enjoying the atmosphere that had been created. Just before they got to the floodplain, where most students would be walking, they broke off from one another. They were still keeping their relationship a secret after all. They faced each other as Yu and Rise: "The Couple" one last time before school.

"Thanks for letting me stay over" Yu said placing his hands on his girlfriend's waist.

"No problem!" Rise enthused. A quick kiss on the lips would be the final physical interaction between the two until the end of school.

"I love you, Senpai"

"I love you too, Kōhai"

With that, they turned the corner. No more physical intimacy that could give them away to the twenty or so Yasogami students around them. For all intents and purposes, they were now Yu and Rise: "The Friends"

"Are you ever gonna stop calling me that?" Rise said, mock hurt.

"I told you, yes. You just have to stop calling me Senpai."

"And I told you that isn't happening!"

Despite hiding their feelings for each other, they still both knew. All they had to do was look into the eyes of the other person to see the love that still lingered between them.

The love that would always linger between them.


	17. Chapter 17 - Spooning

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 17- Spooning

xxx

A/N: Urgh. I keep using prompts in previous ones -_- It's not a good habit XD I'm sure I'll be fine though, most likely… I hope XD This one will probably be quite short. I mean, it's spooning, it's cute what more do you want from me? XD Thanks for all your helps for the upcoming prompt, by the way :) Specifically "The Lonesome Komaeda", "Vinz Clortho", "w01100111" and "Fier66". You guys are awesome, and thanks for the praise and criticism alike (You should go read their stuff, by the way. They're way better at this whole fanfiction thing than I am XD) :) It's all been very helpful :D Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Mmm... Sleepy…" Rise mumbled out.

Yu had been hanging out at Rise's place quite often now. At the very least once every couple of weeks and he'd gotten accustomed to it. He still wasn't sure whether that was a good or a bad thing. He loved it but since he was leaving soon, he didn't want to get _too_ used to it. But in the moment, he couldn't be happier. Rise was slipping in and out of consciousness on his shoulder. They'd both had a pretty rough day inside the TV so she was allowed to be exhausted. She had to manage the entire team so her job was a lot harder than his. Besides, she lacked his natural stamina, despite being a singer/dancer.

"You tired?" Yu asked, already knowing the answer. He was just making conversation at this point.

"Yeah… Can we go to bed? I know it's early but…"

"Sure" Yu interrupted, smiling.

Rise's face lit up a little at that. Her bed had never seemed more inviting. Not only would it get rid of her fatigue, but her Senpai would be there to help her drift off… It was perfect. Almost. She really couldn't be bothered to climb the 10 or so stairs and walk the short distance from the landing to her room. She simply held out her arms to Yu, who had already stood up, and made a noise… Somewhere between a moan and a grunt.

"Meh" Was the final sound that escaped her mouth

"What?" Yu raised his eyebrow at this. What did she want him to do? Well, he already knew. He was just teasing.

"Meeeh!" Rise simply elongated the noise rather than explained its meaning.

"Sorry, I don't speak whatever language that is." Yu said, deadpan. His face betrayed his tone however, as he was grinning like a fool.

"Carry me?"

"Carry me, what?"

"Meeeeh!" She was getting irate now. 'Just a little more' Yu thought.

"Say it, and I'll carry you"

"Pleeeeease!" Rise moaned, arms still outstretched.

Finally, Yu relented and scooped the young idol into his arms. He carried her bridal style up the stairs and finally over the threshold into her room.

"Thanks, Senpai" Rise said softly as Yu plopped her down on the bed. As soon as she hit the bed, she pulled the covers over herself, apparently forgetting about Yu as soon as he put her down. Yu climbed into bed next to her and pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her. She faced away from him, staring at the wall. Rise continued to drift between dream and reality, barely managing to speak.

"Why're you doing that?"

"Doing what?"

"Spooning me. You don't usually do that…"

"You want me to stop?"

"No!" Rise perked up at the prospect of Yu moving away from her before calming down again "You're really warm… It's nice…"

"Then quit complaining" Yu said, pecking her on the cheek. She was about to go out like a light but not before asking another question or two.

"Hey" She asked, still very bluntly

"Yeah?"

"When you're in the TV… Can you be more careful?"

"What do you mean?"

"In the TV today… You were really reckless."

It was true, he was. He was fighting really powerful shadows today so he had to push himself. Yukiko and Yosuke both had to save him on two separate occasions. Even Rise had to use her power to block enemy attacks just to stop him from going down. He probably could have been more careful, but he was the leader. He was the one who _had_ to go all out.

"I was worried…" Rise continued. "I was scared too… Can you promise you'll try to be safer?"

"Yeah" Yu said without even thinking. He didn't want the person he loved most in the world to be scared because of his stupid brashness.

"Good…" Rise managed to get out "Love you…" were the last words Rise could say before finally succumbing to sleep.

"Night, Rise. Love you." Yu said, to nobody in particular, as he kissed Rise on the cheek once again. He looked at the girl in his arms. As the moonlight illuminated her perfect features, Yu couldn't help but reminisce about that night under the stars where they shared their first kiss. The atmosphere was even similar. They were completely alone in the world. Not even sound could permeate it. All he could hear was Rise's deep breathing and a slight whimper she made when she exhaled. It was adorable.

As Yu followed Rise's example and started closing his eyes, he continued to watch the girl in front of him. _His_ perfect person…


	18. Chapter 18 - Doing Something Together

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 17- Doing Something Together (Eating Lunch)

xxx

A/N: Sorry this is late! Sometimes life gets in the way :( This was clearly one that the prompt writer was struggling with XD Still, I thought this'd be good. Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Another failed meal and another lunch alone. This had been Yu's evening routine for a good while now. He would get home and try to cook lunch for two. More often than not though, he'd fail. He was a pretty good cook, in all honesty. He'd picked up a few recipes out of necessity more than anything. His parents weren't around that often so he'd _have_ to cook for himself. It was that or live off cup ramen. However, he very rarely had to make meals for two. This task was made even harder by the fact he was cooking for Rise. It's not that she was fussy, just… critical. He presented her a semi-passable lunch once and she just laughed in his face. She must have been used to the haute-cuisine of showbiz. He _had_ to get it right this time. It was a matter of pride more than anything…

Finally, he made something that tasted good. It wasn't anything fancy, just a beef stew. His problem with cooking for someone other than himself or Nanako is that sometimes he forgot the next part if the recipe. This was probably due to the stress of trying to get it perfect. In these instances, he just had to guess. This time however, his instinct was right as he decided to simmer it with a drop lid. When he thought about it logically, this made sense. It would keep the heat in the pot allowing for better cooking. In the heat of the moment, he wasn't thinking logically. Regardless, it was perfect. And he couldn't wait to show it off to Rise.

xxx

The next day at lunch, Yu had some difficulty making his way to the roof where Rise would be waiting for him. He was accosted by several of his friends. None of them had any malice behind their actions, they just wanted to hang out with him after school. He couldn't blame them to be honest, Yumi was going through a lot of stuff with her dad, Naoki was still getting over his sister's death and Ai was having a small identity crisis. They needed someone to talk to and Yu was a good listener if nothing else.

He had to tell them all he'd get back to them. He had one thing on his mind today and that was making his new girlfriend happy. After the drama with Inoue a couple of weeks back, he was doing everything he could to cheer Rise up. He didn't want to see her break down like that again. Ever. If that meant making boxed lunches for her every night of his life, that's what he'd do.

Finally, he got to the door to the roof, swung it open and…

She wasn't there. She was late.

All Yu could do was sigh as he sat on the vents where the Team had frequently talked about the case. About 5 minutes later, he heard her voice.

"Seeenpaaaai!" Rise yelled as she ran across the roof, almost tripping over herself. Clearly she was in a rush.

"Sorry I'm late! They needed me to put some stuff back in the practice building." She panted. Did she run all the way here?

"It's alright." Yu said, warmly. "Why don't you sit down, you look like you ran a marathon"

"I feel like I did! Do you know how many stairs there are?" Rise giggled as she took her place beside Yu.

"Well, maybe having something to eat'll give you your strength back?" Yu said as he moved to his bag to retrieve the stew he'd prepared the night before.

"Really, Senpai?" Rise said, deadpan. "'cause last time, your food was kinda… bad…"

"Trust me, this time I did a good job." Yu laughed off her quite hurtful remark.

"I hope so, I didn't bring my own lunch today"

Yu took out the stew, which he'd prepared into small disposable bowls, and a couple of spoons. As soon as Rise opened it up, she changed her tune.

"This smells great!" She smiled, inhaling the scent of the stew. "What meat did you use?"

"Beef, it was all I had around."

Before long, Rise was tucking into Yu's food.

"Senpai!" She said between mouthfuls "This is amazing!"

Yu smiled. That was all he needed to hear. A little confirmation from her that she liked it, that she was happy. That's all he wanted to give her, Joy. Not just today, but every day. In that sentence that Rise probably put little thought into, his day was made.

After the young couple finished their lunches, they sat there, looking at the sky and chatting about nothing. Neither of them cared, they were just content being near one another. Time seemed to slow. Suddenly, school didn't matter. In truth, Rise was dreading her lessons after lunch. She had an English test (Her worst subject) but out of nowhere, she stopped thinking about it. All because of some stew… Time, however, did march on, unaffected by the lovers' affection for one another and soon, the bell rang signalling the beginning of afternoon classes.

"Ugh. Why does Lunch have to be so short?" Rise moaned. "I want to stay with you longer…" Her face now a deep shade of crimson.

"I'll talk to you after school" Yu said as he stood and started making his way to the door. He had a feeling that King Moron would really let him have it if he was late because of this…

"Wait!" Rise said, before running up to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself in close. "Thanks for Lunch today…" She mumbled into his chest.

By some miracle, he heard her.

"Thank _you_ for not critically panning it" he chuckled.

Before long, they separated and walked to class together until Rise reached the stairs to the ground floor. A simple wave was all Yu got before she retreated down.

Simple. That was their relationship at the moment. In this chaotic year full of murder and supernatural intrigue, they needed this. A simple anchor to keep them both tied in to reality.

And neither Yu nor Rise would have it any other way…


	19. Chapter 19 - In Formal Wear

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 19- In Formal Wear

xxx

A/N: So yeah, timeskip :D Just a little, to post-high school relationship country :) Hope it isn't terrible XD Sorry it's kind of meh, by the way. I had trouble vocalising my thoughts into words. My head's been in pieces lately… Stress'll do that to you, I guess! XD I promise tomorrow's will be better. I actually have some time to myself so it'll be out at a reasonable hour as well! Probably… XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"I hate this…" Yu said, not to anyone in particular. He was stood in front of a mirror wearing a garb that was foreign to him. A black jacket, matching trousers and shoes, a white shirt and a black tie. In short, a basic suit. He didn't look _bad_. In fact, he thought he looked pretty damn good. He just wasn't a fan of suits. He only ever wore them to weddings and funerals. Neither of these events were ones he particularly enthused about. Tonight, however would be fun…

Rise's first movie since her comeback was premiering tonight, and Yu had received a VIP invitation from the leading lady herself, along with a handwritten letter. They hadn't seen one another for a while, so she probably thought it was a nice touch to send it along with the invite. Yu looked over it now, as he fixed his tie slightly

"Dear Yu

Hey Senpai! I hope you're doing well (I know we chat all the time but shut up, don't ruin this). I'm sending you this for two reasons. The first is because I want you to see my new movie! It's going to be great! I promise you'll love it!"

Yu rolled his eyes. He'd heard those words before…

"The second is because it's public. I want people to know that you exist. I'm sick of seeing all the posts on the internet asking "Who's Risette's main squeeze?!" I hate seeing all the celebrities the media is pairing me up with. I just want everyone to know that I love you… So you better come! Wear a suit. I'll be wearing something _extra_ special too, so you won't feel left out!

All my love

Rise

Xxx"

It was weird, she even said in her little note that they speak all the time. He appreciated the gesture though, she even laced the thing with her perfume. She was trying to be romantic, it was cute…

Finally (after a spurt of aftershave) Yu was ready. He was meeting Rise at a small café about half an hour beforehand so they could catch up and arrive together. He left his small apartment, hailed a cab and went to the rendezvous point.

xxx

Yu arrived early, as he always did. He'd ordered some drinks and a small cake for Rise (He knew she'd want it, she was that kind of person). Not 5 minutes later, a sleek black car pulled up, a door opened… and the most beautiful girl on earth stepped out of it.

Rise looked very different. Completely unlike any other time Yu had seen her. Her hair was up, held together by a clip shaped by a large red butterfly. It was her clothing however, which really took Yu's breath away. Instead of wearing a regular dress, Rise was wearing a tightfitting red cheongsam that showed off her legs which were stopped by red high heels. She looked… amazing?

'No, that isn't the word…' Yu thought.

"Hey, Senpai!" Rise said as she sat down opposite him. "Aww, you got me some cake? Thanks!"

Yu simply sat there, slack-jawed, staring at his girlfriend. He couldn't make any words come out. He needed to say something, but nothing was coming out.

"Umm… Senpai? You look weird. Say something!" Rise giggled. Apparently, his silence was hilarious.

He had to say something… But for the first time in his life, he was speechless.

"You… um…"

Rise tilted her head, slightly.

"There's... No words…"

"What?" Rise said, confused.

Finally, Yu cobbled together his endless stream of thoughts into what resembled a sentence

"There's no words to describe how good you look" He smiled (Finally contented with his answer)

"Awwh! Thanks, Senpai!" Rise squealed, leaning over to kiss her man on the cheek.

A few moments of silence between the two. Despite not being near one another for several months, they didn't need words to communicate their love for one another. Soon after, conversation started.

"So, Senpai, how's college going? After all, if you're providing for me you better get good grades!" Rise asked, half joking about Yu providing for her.

"Pretty good. Don't worry, I'm not going to mess up" Yu smiled, going along with Rise's teasing.

"Awesome!" Rise smiled warmly before looking at her watch. "C'mon, we should get going. Inoue-san will kill me if I'm late…"

Rise stood up, adjusted her outfit slightly and then extended her hand. "Shall we?"

"Of course, kōhai" Yu said, interlocking her fingers with his.

"We're still doing that?"

"Yes"

Rise simply sighed as they entered the car. Within moments, it was whisking them to their destination. The car was very swanky. Cream leather, small TV sets in the seats, liquor… Everything one would expect in a showbiz car. Rise moved closer to her Senpai and snuggled up to him a little, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Just so you know, this is the only time you'll have alone with me all night. The press will try to tear me apart…" Rise's face was covered with despair. Clearly, she didn't want to get separated from him. "I've got security to get you out of there afterwards, because the press'll have questions…"

She was flustered, she wasn't thinking properly. More importantly, she was worried about him.

"Rise" Yu said, stopping her mid-flow. He placed a hand on her shoulder as an act of reassurance. "Everything's going to be fine. I appreciate you worrying about me, but I can look after myself. I'll be with you right up until security gets me out so nobody's going to try and jump me or anything and even if they do, I'll handle it."

"You are pretty strong…" Rise said, looking straight into his eyes.

"I love you, Rise." He said. No sooner had he finished, the car stopped. Bright lights flashed outside, desperately trying to see the couple.

"I love you too, Senpai." Rise returned, punctuating it with a kiss. "Shall we face our adoring public?"

"Let's" Was all Yu said as he opened the door and light flooded his vision…


	20. Chapter 20 - Dancing

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 20- Dancing

xxx

A/N: Ten left! :D This has gone pretty damn fast, actually XD Hope you'll all stick with me for the home stretch! :D Sorry this one's up late, BTW. It's still the 4th my time, so it still counts XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Yu had to make a note to not let Rise come to nightclubs again.

It was the free time on the trip to Tatsumi Port Island. Rise (having been to the island before) suggested that they all head to some club she was going to perform at back in 2009 and they offered her and the Team free drinks. They ran into that Naoto guy too and let him come along. It was going to be a fun night… Until Rise and Yukiko got "drunk" and insisted they played the King's Game. Teddie and Kanji's relationship would never be the same, for one, and Yukiko sat on Yu's lap somewhat suggestively which is probably something she wouldn't be able to live down…

Naoto left quite quickly. He was somewhat annoyed by the fact that the Team had "Lied" to him about the case (In actuality, they told the truth but Yu barely believed what was going on sometimes so he could hardly blame Naoto). Not long after his departure, a song started playing that caught Rise's attention.

"Senpaaai! I looove this song!" she said, suddenly waking up from her near comatose state. Yu simply smiled at her.

The group had decided that he would take care of her since Chie had her hands full with Yukiko and, in Chie's words "The other guys can't be trusted to take care of a drunk teenager". This was fine with Yu. He was dating her after all (Not that the group knew that, this was just a happy accident) so Yu was probably the most qualified to look after her.

"It's soooo good!" Rise said, her words still slurring from her mouth. He was not looking forward to getting her back to the hotel… "*hmm* *hmm* my dread…" she started singing along to the track… Well, humming mostly.

Out of nowhere, Rise gasped and started tugging Yu's sleeve.

"Senpai! Senpai! SenpaiSenpaiSenpaiSenpai!" She repeated over and over, apparently finding a second wind.

"What?" Yu said, interrupting before she pulled his shirt sleeve clean off.

"Dance with meeee!"

"I'm not really a dancer…"

"Pleeease!"

"Rise, come on, you're in no state to be doing this…"

"Come ooooon! I waaant to! I know I shouldn't but I have tooo!"

There was no dealing with her like this.

"Fine…" Yu conceded. "But only quick, you won't sleep otherwise…"

"Yay! Comeoncomeoncomeonnnnnn!" She said, springing to her feet, dragging Yu to the dance-floor downstairs.

Rise started moving to the music once they were both in front of the decks. She was a pretty good dancer, even while she was inebriated. 'Must be all the training' Yu thought. He did not share that gift however. Rise moved like water to the tune, not missing a beat. It was almost as if her instinct was superseding her conscious, drunk, mind. Yu however, was a terrible dancer. Sober or not he just couldn't get the hang of it. It was one of his few weaknesses, to be honest. However, Rise seemed content with him simply holding her hands, shuffling to the music and spinning her around every now and again.

He smiled seeing Rise dance like this. It was such an odd occurrence to him to see her truly cut loose like this despite her carefree personality. She was completely out of her mind and she'd have forgotten all this by the morning but still. It was good to see her like this…

Finally, the song ended and Rise's bravado vanished along with it. She collapsed into Yu's arms moments after the final note. He barely had any warning to throw his arms around her to stop her from banging her face on the dance-floor. Rise seemed to misconstrue Yu's gesture of safety as one of romance. She put her arms around his neck lazily.

"Thanks for dancing with me… I like dancing with you…"

"Really? I'm terrible" Yu joked

"Yeah, but it's OK, cause it's different. When I dance with you, I don't have to try and make people happy… I can just dance… It's really nice… Dance with me again soon, Senpai?"

Yu remembered a promise he made to himself a while ago about making Rise happy no matter what. If that meant looking like an ass just so she could live simply for a while, that was something he'd have to do.

"Sure" Yu smiled.

"OK… Dancing's great when it's with you… Love you"

Yu choked a little at that… She'd never said that to him before. What did this mean?

In the end, he just dismissed it. She wasn't aware of what she was even doing, let alone saying. Wasn't she?

"Let's get you home, you can barely stand up" Yu laughed

"Don't laugh at me! I didn'tevenknowwhatiwasdoing…" Her words started to blend together into a stream of thoughts rather than a coherent sentence.

Yu managed to collect the rest of his friends (Including the drunken Yukiko who insisted she drape herself over Yu saying "I want to see how strooong he is!") and dropped the young Idol off to her room.

As Yu was lying in bed, he thought back to his promise. He made sure to amend it slightly in his mind. He would dance with her every single day if that's what it took to make Rise happy. He hoped she'd be alright with this new promise.

More importantly, he hoped she'd remember they'd even danced.


	21. Chapter 21 - CookingBaking

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 21- Cooking/Baking

xxx

A/N: It's like this prompt was written for Persona 4 XD Should be a fun time :) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Why can't I put peppers in it again?"

"Because we're making chocolate, not curry"

Yu was teaching Rise to cook. Well, not cook, bake chocolate. Yu had to, it was a matter of survival. If he was going to be with Rise for another year he couldn't eat another Durian and Habanero Chocolate Surprise. It was more pepper than chocolate… The young couple was in Yu's kitchen, both making up chocolate. They'd opted to use powder (Walk before you can run, right?) Yu's looked almost perfect. It was the right consistency, had a good colour and (perhaps most importantly) had no spices anywhere near it. Rise's was slightly discoloured and a little too thin, but it had the right flavour at least. She somehow wasn't satisfied…

"But it won't taste good… it'll taste just like every other chocolate" Rise moaned.

"That's not the point, it's the thought that counts"

"Yeah, but what's better than having handcrafted chocolate that you'll remember forever?"

"Chocolate I can actually eat?"

Rise made her 'I'm so done with you' face and flicked some of her runny chocolate at his face. She was a surprisingly good shot as it hit him square on the nose.

"You want to stop messing around and get this into a mould?"

"No" Rise said, hurling another blob of chocolate at Yu's face. This one got him on the cheek. "Now I'm ready!"

Yu smiled. She was in a playful mood today, which wasn't uncommon. It was nice to see though. He was leaving in a few weeks, so to Yu it was relieving to see she hadn't lost her upbeat demeanour in the possibility of his absence. He simply left the chocolate on his face. He was used to getting messy in the kitchen so a little chocolate on his face was nothing to him.

"Then get it in the mould" Yu said, matter of factly. The kitchen was one of the areas he was dead serious as well as in the TV… And while working at the day care. God knows you needed to be careful there…

"But it's not ready yet!" Rise pouted.

"Yes it is"

"It's still runny…"

"It'll set and then you won't have a problem" Yu smiled. "We're leaving them in there overnight so it'll set just fine."

"If you say so…" Rise was still sceptical, but did as Yu said regardless. After they put their creations in the fridge, they leaned back on the countertop resting after a job well done. The kitchen was a mess. They'd used a lot of stuff to measure things out and there was sugar everywhere after an accident that Rise had with the bag.

"We should clean everything up… Dojima'll kill me otherwise." Yu said as he pushed off from the countertop and started cleaning up. Rise joined him after a sigh.

"Did you not like my chocolate?" Rise asked as she began sweeping the sugar into a dustpan.

"What? It was fine, a little gooey but like I said, that'll sort itself out"

"No… Not right now. The ones I gave you on Valentine's day… Did you not like it?"

Yu looked over at Rise. She looked like a kicked puppy, all eyes and sadness. He couldn't lie, it wasn't the best chocolate he'd ever had…

"It was… alright…" Yu said sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"You hated it, didn't you?" Rise looked crestfallen now that the truth had come out.

Yu didn't really know how to play this… He figured honesty was the best policy at all times, so he should just be straight with her.

"I'm not going to lie, it wasn't good."

Rise gasped. It seemed like a hurtful thing to say but Yu cut her off before she could start berating him.

"But" Yu said. "I ate all of it, because it was from you. You could have boxed the worst chocolate on earth and I still would have eaten it."

"Senpai…" Rise's face had developed into a full blush.

"Next year, just tone down the durian" He joked. Rise laughed along with him.

"I'll try, maybe next time I'll use soy sauce or something" she said between chuckles.

The pair finished cleaning the kitchen while making more conversation about various things. (More stuff was thrown at Yu when he mentioned Marie's chocolate but Rise got over it pretty quick). The two moved around each other expertly, never once bumping into each other. They were completely in sync. After only about ten minutes, the kitchen was clean.

"Done!" Rise shouted excitedly. "How long till it's ready?"

"We're leaving it in there overnight, remember?"

"Oh yeah… I'm such a weirdo…" Rise giggled as she leant against her Senpai. It was at that point she noticed not everything was clean… "Your face is still dirty"

Yu hadn't even noticed the chocolaty goop still on his face.

"Oh yeah…" As Yu moved his hand to wipe it off, Rise stopped him before he could.

"I got it…" She said as she moved her face closer to Yu's.

She placed her lips on Yu's cheek first, right where the sweet liquid hit him. She started suckling on it slightly while simultaneously using her tongue to get as much as she could off. His cheek was fine, it just tickled a little bit. It was when Rise moved to his nose and did the same thing that it was kind of… odd. He didn't object though, it made him feel warm inside...

As Rise pulled away from his face, she instead moved into his chest for a hug. The lovers wrapped their arms around one another in a simple embrace. Rise looked up at Yu and said one word.

"Yummy…"

It turned out to be a pretty good afternoon.


	22. Chapter 22 - In Battle

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 22- In Battle, Side by Side

xxx

A/N: Yeah, I really need to get back in the habit again :/ My sincerest apologies. I had a problem coming up with ideas for this. Someone gave me an idea about how Rise can now fight in Ultimax (Username: Supersonicfan7. Thanks, friend! :D) but I couldn't figure out a way to do it. I think this works though :) As a gift for your patience, extra-long chapter! :D Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Persona!" Yosuke cried as the Shadow lunged toward him.

This Shadow was stronger than most. It manifested out of nowhere and caught the entire Team by surprise. Yu had to keep a level head. He was the leader so he had to help his team through this. After Yosuke defended himself from the Shadow's attack, he stumbled backwards.

"Dammit! This thing's strong!" He yelled to Yu.

"I know!" Yu replied before turning to his navigator behind him. "Rise!" Was all he needed to say to her.

"I'm on it!" Rise shouted, Himiko already standing behind her. Within moments, Rise's Persona dissipated. "It…I can't find a weakness!"

Yu turned his attention away from the Shadow for another moment, his face a canvas painted with shock. "What?!"

"It's not particularly weak against anything, but it's not _that_ strong against anything either. It just has a lot of defense, keep pounding away at it!" Rise concluded.

Yu simply nodded to Rise and then relayed her orders to the Team. Yukiko began the beating with fiery attacks. Chie followed with an onslaught of kicks. Finally, Yu engaged in an electrical assault. The Shadow wasn't a particularly smart enemy but it did have a lot of power. It swung its colossal sword down on everyone and they all felt its massive impact. Yosuke was finally up after being sucker punched earlier in the battle but it was all he could do to conjure a typhoon.

After Yukiko healed what she could with her magic, Yu turned back to Rise while Chie wound up her next attack. "How're we doing?"

Rise's Persona once again appeared and vanished after giving her the information she needed. "It's still got a lot of fight left in it, keep going!"

The battle continued for what seemed like hours and they weren't getting anywhere. Worse still, Yukiko was getting tired. If they kept this up, there's no way she'd be healing them much longer. It had become a battle of attrition now. Who could hold out longer? The Team or the Shadow?

The Shadow however, decided it had enough of their games and stopped relentlessly assaulting the team. Instead, it stopped and focused its spirit for the next attack.

"It's charging up! Watch yourselves!"

"Everyone, get your guards up!" Yosuke shouted. This advice came slightly too late for one of them however. Yu had turned around to see what Rise was shouting about and before he could even ready his weapon again, the Shadow attacked. It seemed to realise that the Fool had left himself wide open as this time it attacked him and only him. The stone blade impacted right in his chest.

Yu hadn't felt pain quite this bad in a while. He was used to getting nicked by Shadows but usually the only time he got hit that hard was if his enemy reflected his own attacks back at him. He didn't really recall what happened in the next ten or so seconds. He fell back, he thought he remembers screaming in pain. The blade didn't just impact, it lacerated him, opening a large cut in his chest. He vaguely remembers hearing a scream that wasn't his own. It was blood curdling, filled with terror. Once he hit the ground, his vision returned. His hearing crystalized a little too and he realised who the second scream belonged to. It was so melodic after all… Then, he lost consciousness.

xxx

"SENPAI!" Rise cried, almost involuntarily. She had just seen the man she loved get brutally perforated by a massive sword. Blood was pouring from the cut. As soon as she saw Yu's life literally draining out of him, time seemed to slow down for Rise. It couldn't end like this, not yet. They'd barely started dating. It couldn't end like this. She wouldn't let it.

Yukiko ran over to Yu in a panic and placed her hands on his chest in a desperate attempt to stop the blood. Kanji had been on the side-lines this whole time but he couldn't wait around any longer as he ripped off his shirt and used that to try and stop the crimson liquid as well. Yosuke and Chie were simply shocked, they didn't know if they should keep fighting or help their friend. Teddie was freaking out as well, screaming about his Sensei.

Rise had no idea what she should do. She felt useless. She couldn't do anything to help him as she had no idea where she should start. She couldn't lead the team because they were all in a panic. She couldn't even fight. Could she?

Rise started moving forward. She had no idea what the hell she was doing. Her legs were moving on their own. The rational part of her brain was screaming 'What the hell are you doing!?' 'Why aaren't you helping him!?' and other pertinent questions. She wasn't listening. She was acting on instinct now. It made sense to her, if she ran over to help she'd just be getting in the way. She couldn't lead. All she could do was fight. She _had_ to fight. She had to protect him.

As she walked past Yu's broken form, she knelt down and picked up his sword. The time she pissed about with an umbrella sprang to her mind, but this time it was for real. She tried to get used to the weapon in her hand. It was heavier than she expected. It felt alien to her. But she had to at least try. Her breathing picked up, she was scared. Of course she was, she was about to go toe to toe with a Shadow for the first time in her life. She will protect her perfect person.

Without her consent, a tarot card floated in front of Rise. She was completely undeterred. Confused, yes, but she subconsciously knew what this was and what it signified. She reached out her hand…

The rest of the team looked in awe. Questions such as "What the hell is she _doing_" and "Does Rise seriously think that she can take this thing down?!" flew around between Chie, Yosuke and Kanji. Rise wasn't listening, she was only somewhat aware of what was going on around her. The card floated in front of her.

"Per…"

She began. Moving her hand into a more comfortable position.

"So…"

She had one single thought. '_I have to protect them_'

"Na"

Her hand moved like lighting, crushing the card. An action she had done hundreds of times. And like all those other times, Himiko appeared… At least it looked like Himiko.

Gone was the dress, instead replaced with something much shorter, allowing a greater range of movement. Gone was the visor she held, replaced by fists. Gone was her satellite head, instead becoming a visor for the persona rather than the user. A plumage of hair exploded from her back, much like Rise's. It had changed. All to protect him.

Like lightening it moved, summoning… something. Small orbs surrounded the shadow, four to be exact. Energy started flowing between them. It moved slowly at first but started picking up speed. This energy whipped past the shadow at an alarming rate. It was ripping the Shadow apart with barb like tendons. As it moved faster, the shadow started taking more damage, visibly so. The creature tried to reach out and grabbed Rise but the energy was moving so quickly that it was knocked back into even more pain. Finally, the orbs started moving closer together and, as such, so did the spiked energy beams, crushing the shadow as well as tearing it asunder.

Rise moved quickly and finished the shadow with a thrust from Yu's katana. It pierced the Shadow' stony skin. Finally, it disappeared…

Rise fell to her knees, dropping the katana in the process. Behind her, Himiko had changed back to her usual form, her mission complete, before finally dissipating.

"Rise!" Yosuke yelled, concerned. He ran over to the young idol and helped her stand. She only had one thought on her mind.

"Is he OK?"

Yosuke flashed a smile and nodded. "Kanji and Yukiko managed to stop the bleeding and the cut wasn't as bad as it first seemed. Kanji's gonna need a new shirt but that's the least of our worries. If I had to guess, the impact knocked him out, not the blood loss."

"Is he awake?" Rise had to know. She wouldn't be placated until she did.

"Yeah. He's still lying down and he'll need help getting home but he's up. He'll probably need some real bandages too…"

Yosuke had barely finished speaking before Rise pulled herself away from his support and ran like the wind over to Yu's side.

He seemed alright. He was without his own shirt which had been discarded during impromptu medical procedure. Kanji's shirt was wrapped around his neck, so it wouldn't fall off when he stood up, acting as a makeshift bandage. His chest was stained in blood, as was his face. More importantly, however, there was one detail that seemed out of place.

He was smiling.

This guy, who dared to almost get killed was smiling like an idiot.

"You jerk!" Rise yelled, tears forming in her eyes.

"Woah, hey, calm down…" He said weakly.

"I will not calm down!" The tears were streaking down her face now. "You promised me you'd be more careful. You _promised_!"

"It was an accident… And I'm alright, aren't I?"

"Barely!" she said, clinging onto Yu's arm with both hands. "I don't know what would have happened if I… If I…" Rise's words were catching in her throat. Finally, the floodgates really broke and she started bawling. If it wasn't for Yu's injury, she would have buried her face in his chest.

"It's OK…" He said, reaching his hand up to her face as he started caressing it gently. "I'm OK. And I promise that won't happen again…"

"It better not…" Rise said between sobs. "Nobody knew what to do without you… It was chaos…"

"For real?" Yu asked as he cast his gaze to the rest of his friends. They all looked down sheepishly, confirming his suspicions.

"Everyone except Rise-chan" Yukiko said, finally. "She killed the Shadow in one fell swoop!"

"Really?" Yu asked, genuinely shocked. "You think you could do it again?"

"No…" Rise said, finally calming down a little. His touch was all she needed. "I think it only happened because you were dying…"

"Hmm…." Yu said, completely without thinking.

"Don't you _dare_ put yourself in danger just to use me in battle, you hear me?" Rise said, angrily.

"I won't." He said as he pulled Rise's head closer to his. "I promise" A vow punctuated with a kiss…


	23. Chapter 23 - Arguing

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 23- Arguing

xxx

A/N: Hoo, boy here we go. This was the one I was having some problems with. Thanks to a few users I've already thanked though, I think this'll work. Fair Warning to any of you who were expecting Fluff, there is none in this chapter. However, this is part one of two. Tomorrow's prompt is "Making up afterwards" which I intend to be quite fluffy. So you have a choice here, stick it out and put up with the heavier stuff for a chapter or wait till tomorrow and read some slightly out of context fluff. The choice is yours :) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

It was another one of those lazy Saturday evenings. Yu and Rise were curled up on the sofa watching one of Rise's girly animes. Yu wouldn't admit it to anyone but he was kind of starting to enjoy them. He was even tuning out the fanservice. It should have been just another evening for the couple. However, the events that ensued would be the largest obstacle in their relationship thus far.

The anime they had been watching had just ended. The protagonist had just finished her date with the guy she liked and started gushing to one of her friends about how great it was just before the credits rolled. Typical to this weekly ritual, Yu and Rise started conversing before bed.

"That was a good one" Rise said, her voice already showing her tiredness.

"Yeah it was alright…" Yu said, feigning disinterest. If he was being honest, he actually wanted to see how the events panned out.

"You liked it" Rise said as she poked his cheek, teasing him. Yu lightly slapped her hand away, in jest. Rise continued the tease by acting hurt.

"Oww… You better not do that once we're living together or the police'll get involved" She giggled.

There she went again, talking about the future like it was set in stone.

"Let's not go crazy…" Yu said. This wasn't the first time he'd voiced these concerns. This _was _however, the first time Rise questioned them.

"You always say that" She said, looking Yu dead in the face with a look of nervousness. She had something to ask him but was hesitating. Why? She never usually hesitated…

"Why do you always say that anyway?" She asked, finally.

Yu didn't really have an answer. In his mind, he was just being realistic. He loved Rise with all of his heart, massively so, but they were still young. He was anything if not logical so naturally he thought about their relationship logically as well. It wasn't that he way being cold (If anything, he wished he could look at it another way) just that his brain was still running at top speed, even in something as simple as this. Eventually, Yu answered Rise's question.

"I just don't think we should look _that_ far ahead into the future…"

"Why not?" Rise said, her head tilted to the side slightly. "We love eachother, so we should be together forever, right?"

Yu had to smile at that. Her view of the relationship was light heartening. It was almost childlike in its simplicity. He couldn't refute her point that much either. He wanted to believe her, he really did.

"I know, I love you too. But… I'm just being realistic."

"What'd do you mean?" Rise had dropped her playful tone completely now. She was dead serious.

"It's just… Nevermind…" Yu decided he would drop the subject. He really didn't want to fight with Rise right now, or ever, and he knew that whatever he said, she'd get upset. Rise, however, was quite insistent.

"Say it." She almost commanded.

Yu simply sighed. It was completely useless to argue with her.

"It's just that we're still so young, should we really be making plans this far into the future?" He conceded.

"What's wrong with it? It's good to hope."

"Yeah but if there's no reason to do that, then you're just setting yourself up for more pain down the road."

"What do you mean 'No Reason'?"

Shit.

Truth be told, Yu was considering breaking up with Rise when he left in March. He didn't want to, not by any means. There were just multiple reasons to do so. He didn't think it was fair on her to deal with a long distance relationship, for one thing. Despite her caring nature and how much he loved her, she was a little emotionally immature. She was one of those people that required intimacy. There was nothing wrong with that at all, but it was unfair to deprive her of what she wanted. On top of that, the distance would mean they could only interact for brief windows every day. Neither of them wanted that.

Still, he was backed into a corner now. He had no choice...

"I just thought that in March… When I leave…"

Yu didn't have to finish that sentence. Rise did that for him.

"You want to break up?" Rise's face turned to one of shock as she stood up from the couch.

"I'm not saying that"

"Then what are you saying?!" Tears started forming in Rise's eyes.

"I just think that maybe… I don't know, alright? I don't have all the answers."

"Because it sounds like you want to break up with me when you leave." Rise held all the cards.

"If I do, it's only because I want to protect you." Yu said, rationalizing his decision to himself more than Rise.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Tears were rolling down Rise's face, now stained by her makeup a little.

Yu explained his reasons to her. She was not impressed.

"I'm 'Emotionally Immature'?! What the hell?! What does that even mean?!"

"It's not a bad thing"

"It sounds like one!"

"It just means you need physical intimacy. That and you overreact about stuff. There's nothing wrong with that."

"Overreact? Name _one_ time when I've done that! When you were bleeding out in the TV? When my whole world was falling apart?"

"Obviously not then. Like now, kinda."

The second Yu said that, he knew it was a mistake. Rise stared at him in amazement of his complete foolhardiness.

"_I'm_ overreacting?! Someone tells you the relationship with the man you love is ending and you should just sit there and say 'Oh yeah, that's fine'?! More importantly, you move 3 train connections away and decide to break up with your girlfriend and _I'm_ still the one being irrational?! Why the hell would you say that?! I thought you were different, you asshole!" Rise collapsed onto the sofa, her head in her hands as she quietly sobbed to herself. Yu could just about make out her mutterings.

"You never talked down to me… You never treated me like a kid or like a celebrity… You always treated me like a real person… And now you're being just like the rest of them…"

"Rise…" he said as he moved closer, hand outstretched to comfort her. He had to say something. _Anything_ to fix this. He never meant for it to go this far.

"Get away from me!" She said, moving further from his hand. "Just get out of here, I can't even look at you right now…"

"Rise, please. I…"

"I said get out!" she screeched, interrupting Yu's attempt at an apology.

Yu could only leave. He left in a hurry, with only a backwards glance at Rise crying to herself softly on the sofa.

This was the closest Yu had come to despair since Nanako's accident.

He had to make this right.


	24. Chapter 24 - Making up afterwards

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 24- Making up afterwards

xxx

A/N: Part 2 :D Get hyped :) There be fluff in here so anyone who missed the fluff yesterday, you have today to fill that void :) While writing this, I had ideas for a sort of Paralogue (To use Fire Emblem's parlance) I'll write it once I'm done with this and I've detoxed a bit :) Expect to see that in sort of late November (Before the 28th though, after that i'm all about Persona Q XD) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

The last eight or so hours had been rough for Yu. After his fight with Rise, Yu had to leave quickly. He couldn't bear to look at his sobbing… girlfriend? He wasn't sure what they were anymore… Regardless, since he left in a hurry, he left his jacket at Rise's along with his keys. Dojima and Nanako were still at the hospital so he had nowhere to stay… In the end, he had to crash in the Amagi Inn. It was pretty closeby and he knew Yukiko wouldn't ask a bunch of questions he really didn't want to answer unlike the rest of his friends. As such, he couldn't cook a decent breakfast but worse still, he'd have to talk to Rise today.

He knew in his heart of hearts he'd have to do so, of course. He wanted to do that. He wanted to sort this out. He still loved Rise more than anyone else (Besides maybe Nanako) so he didn't want things to end because he was being an idiot. He just couldn't look at her without feeling regret and self-loathing. He hated the fact that he was the one that made her feel so crappy. When he saw her at the shoe lockers while going up the stairs, she seemed distant and cold. This wasn't the normal Rise, _his_ Rise. He had to fix this.

On his lunchbreak (after Yosuke, Chie and Yukiko all dispersed) he sent a text to Rise.

"Hey. You mind if I get my jacket? I'll be on the roof".

Truth be told, he wasn't expecting Rise to even show up. He was expecting nothing back from her. When he left, she look distraught. But to his surprise…

"Sure. See you in 5"

She was mad (Of course she was) but she was talking to him. That was something, right?

xxx

True to her word, 5 minutes later, Rise met Yu on the roof with his jacket in hand. When he saw her, he tried to smile. Her face however remained expressionless. She simply held out her hand and said

"Here"

"I was wondering if we could talk first?" Yu asked. He knew the moment he took that jacket from her, she'd leave and he'd blow his one chance to fix things.

"Why bother? You made it pretty clear last night what 'us' meant to you." Rise's hand retreated down to her side. That was a good sign. She was at least open to talking.

"I was wrong." Yu said, simply.

"Even so, you said some really mean stuff last night."

"I know… And I'm sorry."

"You're _sorry_? That's all you have to say for yourself?" Yu had to get her away from this line of questioning. This would just start another fight. If that happened, he might lose her forever. He would not let that happen. Not over his dead body.

"Look, I shouldn't have said the stuff I said last night. I shouldn't have said I wanted to break up when I leave. I don't. I _really_ don't. I was being an idiot."

"You can say that again…" Rise said, turning her face away from him.

"Most importantly though, I'm sorry I walked out."

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry I left even though you yelled at me. I shouldn't have done that. I love you and I'm so sorry that I'm the one that made you feel like that."

"Senpai…"

"Last night, I couldn't go to bed. I think I got, like, an hour. You know why? 'Cause I knew you were crying yourself asleep. I _hate_ that I'm the one that did that to you. I am so sorry, Rise. I love you so much. I want to be with you forever. I want to move in with you and get married and all that stuff you daydream about when we're together. I love you Rise." Yu finished. He was somewhat worried… That last part seemed to just be a string of thoughts rather than a coherent sentence. He didn't care. He just wanted to be with her again. He couldn't bear to be apart from her anymore.

"Senpai…" Rise began her rebuttal. Yu braced himself for the 'We should see other people' or the 'You crossed a line' thing that he thought he knew was coming. However…

"I'm sorry too…" Rise said sheepishly, staring at the floor.

Yu gasped.

"I shouldn't have said you were an asshole. That was weighing on me all night, you have no idea. I thought you'd be really mad about that. You're not an asshole… You're perfect…" Her face had turned a deep shade of crimson as she continued. "And you were right, I did overreact a little… You were just trying to protect me." Before Rise could continue, Yu grabbed her by the shoulders and moved a little closer to her.

"Don't defend that. I was being stupid"

"Yeah, you were a little" She giggled slightly. "We both were actually… I was scared of losing you so when you bought it up I guess I flipped out… I'm really sorry…"

"I'm really sorry too…"

Silence overtook them. Was that it? That was the "epic-make up"? Yu thought it could be a little more… theatrical. He moved his hands down to Rise's waist and pulled her in, much to her surprised.

"I love you, Rise"

Rise smiled again. "I love you too, Senpai…"

Their faces moved closer together and their lips touched. This was not an act of passion or love, but a promise. It was on this kiss they swore to one another that they wouldn't fight like this again…

Yu didn't get his jacket back until the following morning.


	25. Chapter 25-Gazing into each other's eyes

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 25- Gazing into each other's eyes.

xxx

A/N: Once again, apologies for the tardiness of this chapter XD Hopefully I'l get this done this week. I have less shifts at work which means more writings for you :) Since there's only 4 chapters left after this one, I should have it done by Thursday provided nothing gets in the way :P (It will, probably. Everything that I'm doing is told to me moments before it actually happens XD). I'm bending the epilogue a little bit here, sorry about that. To be fair, I've written so many of these bloody things, I'm not sure if I'm going against my own canon at this point XD I'm not 100% on this one, but hopefully it's pretty good :D Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"The next stop is: Yasoinaba. Yasoinaba"

The monotonous drone coming from the kind of busted speakers on the old train woke Yu from his light sleep. He didn't really get any last night, what with the planning with Dojima and Yosuke.

It was summer vacation and Yu was adamant to visit Inaba, and coincidentally, his friends and second family again. It had been a while since he saw them last and even then a lot of… stuff (for lack of a better word) in the form of the P-1 Grand Prix. He didn't really get a lot of time to hang out as friends during that time. Even worse, Rise had been sort of kidnapped during that whole event so she spent most of the time afterwards recovering. These next two weeks would be different though. No crazy Shadows starting a fighting tournament in the TV, no secret organisations coming in to hunt Shadows and no buying porn for Yosuke at the station. Just hanging out with the people he was closest to.

Yu's phone rang then. That truly woke him up. He rolled his eyes a little as he saw the caller ID throw up Yosuke's name. It's not that he hated talking to him, it's just he knew what the conversation would be about. Still, he needed to go over some stuff with him. Besides, he was his best friend…

As such, he let it ring just a little longer before answering.

"Hey, Yosuke"

"Dude, what took you so long to pick up?"

"I was asleep" Yu lied "It's a long train ride"

"Ah, OK. How far away are you?" Poor naïve Yosuke…

"I'm rolling in now"

"Alright, Cool. Everyone's waiting at the station for ya!" Yosuke said, cheerily. He was excited to see his partner again.

"What about Rise?" Yu asked

"No… Why'd you ask me not to tell her about this again?"

Yosuke's question was a valid one. To an outsider, a guy asking someone not to tell his girlfriend he was in town seems a little… devious. He wanted to surprise her though. He was looking forward to the look on her face when he turned up. He was looking forward to making her happy…

"It's a surprise." Was all Yu said

"That's all you say when it comes to this" Yosuke groaned…

"A man has to have secrets." Yu laughed as the train slowed down.

"The current station is: Yasoinaba. This is where this train terminates. The current station is: Yasoinaba" The train speaker droned yet again

"I'm here" Yu said, returning his attention the phone call. "See you in a second"

"OK, Partner!" Yosuke enthused as he hung up the phone.

Not long after Yu got off the train, holdall bag in hand, he saw the whole Investigation Team. Well, the whole team sans the Navigator. There was an explosion of noise from them all as he approached the group. "Hey Senpai"s were thrown around as were "Welcome Back"'s. Yukiko hugged him and everything. It was nice…

"Where's Rise-chan?" Chie piped up after initial "Hello"'s we issued. "Yosuke, did you forget to tell her? Why wouldn't you tell her that her boyfriend is back in town, you moron!" This earned a groan from the group, including Yu.

"Good to know that you two still haven't ironed the tension out…" He sighed. "I'm surprising her later, Chie. Your boyfriend didn't forget."

This caused both Yosuke and Chie to blush madly.

"Don't be so stupid!" Chie said, very quickly.

"Yeah, c'mon guys. Stop joking around…" Yosuke blurted out, face turned away from everyone.

"Did he touch a nerve, Yosuke-senpai?" Naoto probed over Yukiko's violent laughter.

"No, shut up… Yu, go see your girlfriend. Then we'll all go grab some steak or something."

"Steak… who does that remind me of?" Yu said as he walked away from the group.

"Shut up!" Chie yelled at him while he retreated. He looked back on them while the normal chaos ensued. He hated leaving them alone but he needed just a little bit more calm before that particular storm. A storm he loved sailing through, sure, but he just needed to prepare a little more first. Starting with his girlfriend…

xxx

It took a while to get to Rise's. He was on foot after all and Yasoinaba was a fair distance away. The Team even passed him on their bikes on the way to Junes. He needed the walk though. God knows he needed to stretch his legs after sitting on that rusty old train for what seemed like a million hours. After a while, he wound up in Marukyu Tofu…

She was there washing dishes in the rear of the store, her back to him. Yu's heart skipped several beats, even though he couldn't even see her face. He couldn't confuse her for anyone else. Her red twintailed hair, her small form, even the way she hummed a little song to herself as she worked. Everything about her. His love for her came flooding to the forefront of his mind. So much so that he couldn't even bring himself to mess with her… Well, he could a little bit.

"Excuse me, can I get three orders of Ganmodoki please?" He said. The order was special for them, it was the thing Kanji ordered when they all met Rise for the first time. He hoped she'd remember that…

He heard her gasp just a little bit, stopping everything she was doing as soon as she heard his voice. She turned around slowly. It was at that moment their gazes met.

Even from across the store, Yu could see everything going on behind her large brown eyes. It was almost as her thoughts were laid bare on them. Confusion, initially, as they were much wider than he was used to. After that, happiness (Which caused Yu to crack a smile), but a special kind of happiness. The kind that only he could bring her, one of purity. And finally, Love. It manifested almost as realization, with a knowing smile to match…

When Rise looked into his eyes, she saw what she always saw. A blankness. This wasn't bad, however. His grey eyes instead of being empty portrayed more of a façade of composure. Rise knew that behind them, there was a sea of emotions he wanted to express. It calmed her to see this side of him was still intact. Unlike her however, he was less easy to read.

"Senpai…" she finally said, after they simply stared at one another for a good thirty seconds.

"Hey" He smiled.

That was all they needed to say to one another. The rest of their greeting was conveyed by the next couple of seconds. Rise almost ran over to the counter, banging into a table as she did so. She didn't care, she needed to be closer to him pain be damned. The distance from the sink to the counter couldn't have been more than about 10 feet, but to Rise it felt like a desert with an oasis on the other side. Finally, she crossed the gulf with only the tabletop between them. She ignored it as she grabbed his collar with one hand.

Their lips crashed together. Their tounges and mouths were doing all the talking, not Their voices. This kiss was better than any conversation in the world to convey all the feelings they wanted to share with one another. Love, Passion, Longing, the relief of their loneliness… They couldn't be shared with words, only actions…

Finally, the kiss broke. Their foreheads met and they continued to gaze into each others eyes. No words were needed. Neither wanted to break the perfect, isolated bliss they had created...


	26. Chapter 26 - On one of their Birthdays

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 26- On one of their Birthdays

xxx

A/N: I'm mixing the prompts about a little bit for this one. The actual 26th prompt is supposed to be "Getting Married" but I feel like that one should be one at the very end. Makes sense, y'know? :) The remaining prompts are kind of grouped? They don't exactly flow into each other, but you'll see what I mean :) So this is the only stand out. So schedule as it stands is: This, Group of 3, Wedding and then we're done! :D Sorry this is late… Again :P (Seriously, I think I've said that more than "Hello" recently XD) Personal Life and Work got in the way :/ Hope this makes up for it :) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"Senpai! Wakeupwakeupwakeupwakeup!"

Rise was a ball of boundless energy, but what else is new?

Today was Yu's birthday. He went to bed a sixteen year old and was now being rudely awakened as a seventeen year old. Needless to say, Rise was excited. She had planned a little party for him at Junes which took way longer than it probably should have. At least two weeks. Regardless, she couldn't wait to see his happy face when he was surrounded by his friends. She was mostly just looking forward to spending time with her boyfriend though. That and giving him his gift. She was _really_ looking forward to that.

At Rise's call, Yu's eyes opened sleepily. She loved his eyes even when they were only half open and gunked up with sleep. Their dull shine always caught Rise's eye. As he sat up from the futon to look at the girl sitting on his legs, he rubbed his eyes to clear his vison.

"I'm up, I'm up… Mornin'" Yu said, groggily. Despite his words, he was still half asleep.

"Mornin'!"

"Can you get off my legs? They're falling asleep"

"Sorry!" Rise apologised as she scrambled off his legs and moving to his side. "Happy birthday, Senpai!" she cheered as placed a light kiss on his cheek.

"Thanks" Yu smiled, showing his perfect teeth.

"C'mon, get dressed!" Rise said, jumping up and throwing his clothes at him.

"Why?" Yu said, still not completely aware thanks to his rude awakening.

"Everyone's waiting at Junes" Rise told him, like a mother would tell their child. She would not let something like her boyfriend's sleep cycle ruin the plans they'd made. "Get up, c'mon."

"What time is it?" Yu enquired while standing up.

"Doesn't matter, just get dressed" Rise said, matter of factly. She knew if Yu got her talking, they'd be in his house for at least another hour…

Yu, realising he'd lost this battle just got ready while making very idle conversation. After a short time, both of them were ready to leave. Before they could get out of the house though…

"Big Bro!" Nanako exclaimed, seeing Yu and Rise descend from the stairs hand in hand. She ran over to her big bro and wrapped him into a hug.

"Hey, Nanako" Yu smiled at his little sister.

"Happy birthday, Big Bro! Um, I got you a present, but it's not ready yet." Nanako said as her expression changed from joy to a frown with her words.

"It's OK, Nanako" Rise chimed in "You can give it to him when I give him my present tonight, alright?" she smiled, placating the situation a little.

"OK, Rise-chan! Are you going out?"

"Yeah, we're gonna meet everyone at Junes. You wanna come?" Yu asked.

"Um…how long will we be there? 'Cause I need to come home to finish your present…" Nanako fretted. Luckily, Rise was ready to calm her again.

"We'll only be a little while so you'll have plenty of time to come back and finish" she consoled. Nanako really didn't want anything to go wrong… She smiled at Rise's words though.

"OK!" Nanako shouted as she ran over to put on her shoes. She sat on the floor, fumbling with them, while singing "Every day's great at your Junes!" over and over again. Yu and Rise shared a laugh. Seeing Nanako act so freely and happily, especially after everything over December, warmed their spirits immeasurably.

xxx

It was quite the scene watching the three go down the street towards Junes. Yu and Rise gripped one another's hands while Nanako ran ahead of them. One party calling for the other when they lagged too far behind or got too far ahead.

After about half an hour, the little "family" made it to the food court. To Yu's surprise, when Rise said "Everyone" she really did mean "Everyone. Not just the Investigation Team. Kou, Daisuke, Yumi, Ai and Naoki were there (Despite Naoki looking incredibly uncomfortable. He seemed to be enjoying himself however.) Many "Happy Birthday"'s ensued, as did gift giving.

Yosuke got him a cookbook stating "So Rise doesn't kill you or herself" as he gave it to him (Much to Rise's chagrin). Yukiko gave him a small package consisting of some small chocolates and sweets and other stuff. According to her "I didn't know what exactly you would want, so I went with the safe option. I know it's not very personal but I hope you'll like it". Chie surprised him with a fishing pole. She must have seen him down by the riverbank a couple of times. Kanji's gift was a model. He must have been paying attention as he always was good with his hands. Naoto got him a scarf. It was out of season (What with it being mid-February) but it was the thought that counted. It was a really nice scarf too…

Kou and Daisuke had pitched in together for some high-end sneakers telling him he needs all the help he can get along with a playful punch in the arm. Ai got him a gift card. He had to smile at that, it was very like her. Naoki got some liquor from his parent's store which shocked him. He didn't have Naoki down as a rule-breaker. Yumi bought him an anthology of the performing arts. She outright ordered him to practice some of them with her as he opened it. Again, very like her.

Teddie bought him a magazine. A very specific one. He had to hide it from embarrassment as soon as Teddie presented it. As he threw it towards his Sensei he stated "Yosuke _loves_ these magazines, so I figured you'd like it too!" Yu had to laugh… This was exactly how he imagined his birthday panning out.

xxx

After Yu glad-handed for a little, he took Nanako back home and dropped off his gifts in his room. Nanako ran upstairs like a shot and yelled to the young couple that they shouldn't interrupt her. When they quizzed her as to why, all she said was it was a surprise.

Yu and Rise settled down on the couch with Rise leaning her whole body against Yu's shoulder with her arm around his neck. By this point, that position was second nature to them.

This was a nice enough way to spend the remainder of his birthday. The pair of them rarely got up apart from for food. It felt like any other lazy Sunday afternoon. It was interrupted, however, by Nanako crashing down the stairs with a hastily wrapped package in her hands. She presented it to Yu with a flourish.

"I finished it!" Nanako said, her voice swelling with pride.

"Oh, wait a sec! I'll go get my gift for you, Senpai!" Rise said, practically launching off the couch and bolting up the stairs. She left Yu and Nanako together laughing softly at her actions.

"What do you think she got me?" Yu quizzed his little sister. He was genuinely curious. Her last gift, a large silver bracelet, still hung around his wrist. He very rarely took it off since it meant so much to him. Needless to say, he was wondering how she'd top it.

"I dunno" Nanako shrugged. "I'm glad she waited for me to finish mine before giving it to you though! Now, it's super special!"

Yu smiled, she was right. If only Dojima didn't have to work tonight, his whole family would be here right now. Even without his uncle being there, the familial bond was still retained. Like he and Rise had observed before, when they were alone with Nanako, it was like she was their daughter. The walk to Junes only accentuated that feeling.

At that point, Rise came thundering back down the stairs with an elegant box in her hand. Both his girlfriend and his sister now sat at his feet as he sat on the couch.

"Do you want to give him yours first, Nanako-chan?" Rise asked.

"OK!" Nanako enthused as she thrust her gift upon her brother. He opened it with a little trepidation. He was still recovering from her Valentine's Day chocolate… To his surprise however, the package contained a small wooden box. As he opened it, he was lots of pieces of paper, all of which were adorned with hand drawn pictures of him, Nanako, Rise, Dojima and his other friends. On the other side of the drawings there were captions describing them written in Nanako's child-like prose. It was adorable.

"Nanako…" Yu smiled wistfully as he looked through the pictures.

"Dad helped come up with an idea, and Rise-chan gave me the box, but I drew all the pictures! I did some pictures of stuff we haven't done yet, so now you have to come and do them with me, OK?" Nanako said, her voice lilting. True to her word, there was a drawing of her, Yu and Rise on a Rollercoaster. The caption said "Me, Big Bro and Rise-chan at Destiny Sea".

He slumped off the sofa onto the floor to join Nanako and Rise as he pulled the former into a tight hug.

"Thanks Nanako, this is really sweet" Yu smiled as he let her go.

Nanako blushed and giggled "Thanks, big bro… Rise-chan! It's your turn!"

Nanako's words snapped Rise out of her reverie. She couldn't help but stare at Yu and Nanako in those few moments. She was an only child, but she always thought it would be nice to have a sibling. In the moments from Yu opening his gift to Nanako talking to Rise, she was in awe at the affection between the two even though they weren't siblings by blood. She felt very lucky to be privy to such an intimate moment.

"Oh… yeah, sorry Nanako" Rise said, smiling inwardly. "Here ya go, Senpai!"

Yu took the sleek box from Rise and opened it up. Within, there was a large watch sitting on a small, deep blue, cushion. He took it out and admired it in the light. It was bulky, as if it were built to last. That sentiment echoed in the materials as well. Stainless steel and a large leather strap. The face was a deep black with the numbers etched into it in white. Already set and running too. Rise had thought of everything apparently. As Yu was turning it in the light as if to appraise it, he noticed the back. There was an inscription on it…

"_Senpai_

_I look forward to the day time stops for us_

_So we can stay together forever_

_All my Love, until the end of time_

_Kōhai_"

Yu beamed. Those words made his way into his heart and burrowed deep within it. He would carry them with him forever. Yu simply placed the watch back in its box, reached across, cradled Rise's face and placed his lips on hers.

With luck, time would choose this moment to end its relentless advance.


	27. Chapter 27 - Doing something Hot

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 27- Doing something hot

xxx

A/N: Note to self: Scrub Internet History when researching this chapter XD Don't expect anything _too_ risqué here, trying to keep the Teen rating, y'know :) Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

It had been a long day for Yu. As more and more members joined the team (With Naoto being the most recent) Yu had to start buying and maintaining more and more gear. What made matters worse is that they didn't have any kind of funding besides Yu's own pocket. To compensate, he had to work two jobs. One at the Day Care and the other as a janitor at the hospital. Needless to say, he was exhausted. It also didn't help that one of the kids tackled him today so he was in a little pain from some bruises. It was his intention just to watch TV for a little while, eat a crappy microwave meal and then go to bed. That's what he would do… If it weren't for the beautiful girl standing in his living room…

"Surprise!" Rise said when he walked into the living room.

"Rise?!" Yu exclaimed, somewhat shocked.

Her being in the house wasn't the surprise. After all, Yu gave her a key once their relationship got more serious. It did come with the whole "Only in Emergencies" caveat, which she obviously had ignored. He was more surprised that she had apparently read his mind as Rise was the one person he wanted to see. He would more than gladly change his (frankly rather shitty) plans for her.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, somewhat arbitrarily, as she threw her arms around his neck.

"I thought I'd come by and cheer you up! You seem really run down lately." Her face wrinkled with worry. "Is everything OK?"

"Yeah, everything's fine." Yu lied. He didn't want to tell her the whole truth. If she started worrying too much about him, it'd have a knock-on effect that could mess up her navigation… That and he never wanted Rise to distress just because of him.

"Senpai." She said, flatly. "It's your job to lead everyone. It's _my_ job to make sure everyone's at their best." She smiled. "Besides… I wanna see you smile…" Her face tinged slightly crimson. "So tell me what's up?"

"Alright…" Yu sighed. He had to concede, she made a good point there. Besides, there was no use hiding anything from her. "Can we sit down first though? I've had a really long day…"

"Sure" she smiled.

The couple sat beside each other on the couch. This couch might as well have been the centre of the universe for their relationship, they spent that much time on it. Rise's hand rested on Yu's thigh as she stared at him with a look of concern. It broke his heart to see her face like that.

"Basically" Yu began, resting his hand over hers. "I'm having trouble keeping everyone's equipment maintained and stuff, so I'm having to work a couple of jobs."

"Two jobs?" Rise said, her face changing to a look of shock. "That's crazy! How do you have time for your schoolwork?"

"I kinda… don't…" Yu sputtered out.

"Senpai…" she said, pityingly. "If you needed help with all that stuff, you should have just asked. I'm sure everyone would pitch in if you just asked"

"Yeah, I know. I might have to do that…" Yu chuckled. Doing that had occurred to him, he just wanted to deal with it himself rather than have everyone else micromanage.

"Promise me you'll talk to everyone?" Rise pouted, breaking out her puppy dog eyes. There she was manipulating him with cuteness again.

"Sure" he smiled.

"Good" she said gently. "How was work, anyway?" She asked. It was at this point Yu realised he hadn't changed out of his janitor's uniform yet. Rise's presence did that. He couldn't count the number of times her just coming up and saying hi to him had made him lose has train of thought.

"It was OK, I'm in a little bit of pain though." This caused Rise to gasp. The time she took down a Shadow because he was on the verge of death was an image that would never quite leave her mind.

Apparently sensing this, Yu hastened to add "I'm alright, the kids were just a bit rough today so my back's all sore." As he was telling her of his battle scars, he couldn't help but rub the small of his back which had been agitating him the whole way home. When he looked back up at Rise, she had a devious look in her eye. Yu knew that look. She was (In her words) "Thinking of something naughty".

"Hey… um… I used to get massages from a professional after my performances. She taught me how to do it once so… If you like I can…" Every word made Rise's face a deeper shade of red.

"You want to give me a massage?" Yu asked.

"Yeah…" Rise said, meekly.

Yu considered it. If she was only a little good at it then it'd help his pain. Also, having his girlfriend run her hands all over his back wouldn't exactly be a bad thing. On the other hand, if she got it wrong, he'd be in crippling, agonizing pain.

In his mind, the benefits clearly beat out the negatives.

"Sure" he smiled.

"Huh?!" Rise gasped, almost as if she was almost expecting him to deny her. "O-okay… Um… Take your shirt off…" Rise muttered.

Yu complied, completely without fear, and did away with the cheap hospital shirt.

"Wow…" Rise said under her breath. She couldn't believe her luck, more than anything…

"What do you want me to do next?" Yu asked, throwing his shirt onto the floor.

"Um… Lie down on your stomach…"

Once again, Yu did as he was told without hesitation. He lay on the couch, his back pointing skyward.

What ensued next was more than a little awkward.

"Um… since we don't have a table, I'm gonna need to… um… sit on you… And I need to sit as close to your back as I can so… I have to sit on… your… um…" Rise was tripping over her words. She wouldn't be allowed to do this, surely?

"Go ahead" Yu said, his face being impossible to read due to his position.

An "Eep!" escaped Rise. A mix of excitement, apprehension and surprise.

The young couple were in a compromising position. Yu was lying facedown, his head resting on his arms. Rise, however, was sitting stiff as a rod on her boyfriend's backside, her legs down by his hips and her hands on his back.

Now that she was actually in position, she seemed to calm down a little.

"Where did you say you're sore again?" She asked.

"Pretty much all over… The small of my back is worse though."

With that, Rise started moving her hands over Yu's back…

Yu didn't really know if she knew 100% what she was doing, but it felt amazing. He could feel the stress and the pain melt away at her touch. Her lithe fingers roamed all over him, bringing pleasure wherever they went. An involutray moan escaped his lips.

"D-don't do that!" Rise blurted out… Clearly she was nervous.

"Sorry…" Yu said, but he was too euphoric to care.

Rise's busy hands continued long into the night…


	28. Chapter 28 - Doing something Ridiculous

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 28- Doing something ridiculous

xxx

A/N: So this one was a fun idea, in my head XD Not 100% sure this would translate all too well but hey ho, we'll give it a go :) Also, I think I've realised I have kind of a thing for Nanako… Not like that, you pervs, she's like 8 :P I mean that I really like writing her XD I've had ideas for fics involving her as well so expect more of that stuff in the future :) Fun Fact, I've had this open for about 24 hours before finishing this… Jesus Christ XD I had to write some weird ass stuff to get over this bout of writer's block XD Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Yu simply sighed. This was not going well.

He had to come up with an idea for a date but not spend too much money. Rise had suggested that they do something this weekend, but Yu couldn't think of anything… They'd already done a lot of stuff he would consider "Date" material. He was sitting at the breakfast bar in his kitchen scratching down notes and his head in equal measure. Nanako had been looking at her brother all morning, wondering what he could be doing that had him so flustered. Eventually, she had to ask him. She'd seen her dad do the exact same thing, after all…

"Um… Big Bro?" she asked tentatively.

"Yeah?" Yu said, smiling as he looked up from his brainstorm. So far he only had the words "Date Ideas" and "Not another day on the couch".

"What are you doing?" Nanako cocked her head slightly to the side.

"Oh. Well, I'm trying to think of something to do with Rise when I see her next."

"How about you go to the movies! There's this really cool one on right now with…" As Nanako gushed about the film enthusiastically, Yu chuckled slightly. He loved seeing her like this.

"That's a great idea, Nanako, but I'm trying to think of something we've never done before."

"Hmm…" Nanako mused, she began tapping her chin as well. "I know!" She said after a short while "Why don't you have a sleepover!"

"A sleepover?" Yu asked, confused. She was probably going to do that anyway…

"Yeah! You get your futon and you put it in the living room and you play games and watch movies and eat yummy snacks all night! Mai-chan had one a few weeks ago and it was really fun! Maybe you and Rise-chan can do that?!"

Yu actually considered it… He never really had sleepovers as a kid and god knows he never really tapped into his inner child these days. It might be nice to kick into some childhood nostalgia. It'd be a little crazy, but maybe it could work…

"I think…" Yu said, pausing for dramatic effect. Nanako looked at him with eyes full of hope. "… You've hit the nail on the head, Nanako." He finished.

"Really?!" Nanako blushed.

"I'll need to buy some stuff though, you wanna come to Junes to help me?" Yu asked, standing from his feeble attempt at a one-man thinktank.

"OK!" Nanako said excitedly.

xxx

Rise certainly had no idea what to expect from this date. All Yu had told her was "Bring some snacks… And your pyjamas". What the hell was she supposed to take away from that? She wasn't complaining for a second, but she still couldn't help but wonder what her boyfriend had been planning. It was a pain too. Yu's vagueness didn't help Rise with her bag packing, she just grabbed whatever she found in the cupboards in the way of snacks. Along with some essentials like a toothbrush and of course her pyjamas, her small holdall was fit to bursting. She was just happy to be on the doorstep of Yu's house. That bag was way too unwieldy to carry about much longer…

"Hey" Said Yu as he opened the door in response to Rise's knock with a smile plastered across his face.

"Hey!" she said, clearly struggling with the bag. "Can you put this somewhere? It's kinda heavy"

"Um… sure? How much stuff did you bring anyway?" confused, Yu took the bag as he said this.

"I'm… not sure…" Rise admitted sheepishly. "But that's not important, what are you planning anyway?"

"It's kind of… off the wall." Yu frowned. He liked this sleepover idea he'd planned, but describing it would sound odd at the best and childish at the least. Still, he had to do it. What was he going to do? Invite her in and just say "Sleep on the floor"?

"I wanted to do something different this time." He began as he invited Rise into the house and placed her bag next to the door. "Nanako suggested we have a sleepover."

"I was gonna do that anyway" Rise protested. In her defence, he was making this sound like a pretty crummy date so far.

"No" Yu corrected her. "Like what you do when you're a kid. Like watch spooky movies in pyjamas and sleep on the floor and stuff."

"Oh! That sounds fun!" Rise enthused. Yu was surprised, he wasn't sure she'd be completely on-board with the idea. "But…" Rise started, her face tinged red. "I didn't bring a futon… I'll have to share yours, Senpai…"

"I don't think that'll be a problem" Yu said, wrapping Rise into a hug.

"Good" Rise giggled.

xxx

Before long, the two had everything set up. Discarded snack bowls were on the table, emptied of their salty or sweet goodness long ago. A pillow had landed somewhere in the corner after a pillow fight, a blanket was thrown haphazardly over the couch and some of Rise's makeup sat on the table after Rise insisted she make her Senpai over. Now they were just lying on top of Yu's futon, their legs entangled from all the moving around. The couple was still awake. Simply talking… and laughing…

"Is your head OK?" Rise giggled softly, referring to the bump on Yu's head when a pillow dodge ended up with him smacking his head on the table.

"Yeah, it's fine." Yu chuckled, his face clear of makeup and head throbbing slightly. A bump on the head wasn't going to stop him though.

"I'm glad" Rise smiled. "Thanks for this, Senpai… I never really had sleepovers as a kid. Like I said before, I never really had that many friends so I never did this stuff… It was fun" That smile stayed plastered on her face for the rest of the night.

Before long, a small voice came from behind the couple from the stairs.

"Big Bro?"

"Nanako?"

"I had a scary dream… Can I sleep down here with you guys?"

Yu and Rise looked at each other and without words, came to the obvious conclusion.

"Sure. You can share the Futon with Rise, I'll just sleep on the couch" Yu said, standing up and moving towards the couch.

After a few more minutes of conversation between the couple and the newcomer, sleep took them all. Yu's final moments of consciousness though, were something special.

He saw Nanako and Rise, the two girls he loved more than anything in the world, cuddled up together and both smiling. Some moonlight got in through the slit in the curtains illuminating their faces and accentuating their serenity…

This image caused Yu's heart to warm as dreams took him yet again.


	29. Chapter 29 - Doing something sweet

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 29- Doing something sweet

xxx

A/N: This was all I could think for this one :/ Like I said, towards the end here, the prompt makers clearly were running out of steam. Still, I'm pretty happy with this one. Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

Yu was worried.

Rise hadn't been in school all day. She never missed a day of school, ever, so he was incredibly anxious. His mind was running all of the worst case scenario all throughout class. What if she got called back to the city? What if her grandmother fell down? What if Rise was in an accident?

He needed to stop doing that.

After Yu finished basketball practice (One in which he was completely unfocused) he found himself standing on Rise's doorstep. He hoped to god she was alright…

Her grandmother answered his knock on the door.

"Oh, hello, Yu-kun" the elderly woman said with a smile.

"Hello, ma'am. I was wondering where Rise is? She wasn't at school today" Yu asked, his face a picture of anxiety.

"You needed be worried, Yu-kun. She's just a little sick is all."

"Ah, I see. I'm not going to lie, I was a little worried about her"

The two shared a chuckle. Over the course of Yu ad Rise's relationship, he had rather enjoyed his chats with her elderly relative. She was very much just an older Rise, more matured, but still retained some of her granddaughter's playful nature.

"She's been asking for you all day. 'I hope _Senpai_ isn't too worried about me' she kept saying"

"I can imagine" Yu laughed. "Do you mind if I go see her then?"

"Of course not, Yu-kun. I warn you though, she's probably going to make you her servant for the evening." The shop owner joked.

"I can live with that" He smiled. "Thank you, ma'am." Said Yu as he stepped inside, took off his shoes and made his way upstairs with a wave to Rise's Grandmother.

The sight he saw when he got upstairs was somewhat… interesting.

There was Rise, all tucked up in bed. Tissues were all over her bed. Her nose was red, as was her forehead. Her hair was tousled about, just like it was in the mornings. As he walked in, her eyes lit up. Even while she was ill, she looked adorable.

"Senpai!" Rise said, her nose obviously bunged up.

"Hey" He smiled. "You're sick then?"

"No, I just thought I'd surround myself in tissues" Rise laughed, which turned into a cough.

"You could have texted me or something, I was really worried…" Yu said, moving closer to his girlfriend and sitting on the chair near her bed.

"I was gonna, but my phone's all the way over there" she dais, gesturing vaguely over to her dresser.

"You couldn't walk the two feet?"

"Not that you care, but it hurts to stand up… I'm really bunged up over her" she frowned.

"Well, I'm here now, so you can boss me about" Yu smiled as he took his girlfriend's hand.

"You don't have to do that, Senpai" she smiled. "It's sweet of you to offer though"

"Don't be stupid, I want to see you get better"

"But if you spend all day here, you're gonna get sick too"

"Your point being?" Yu asked, an eyebrow raised. "What do you want for dinner, I'll make it for you"

"Senpai…" Rise said, a blush making its way to her face despite it being reddened by the fever. "Umm… some soup? I think there's a can in the cupboards somewhere"

"Just 'soup'? No preference for flavour?" Yu asked, sarcastically. Just because she was ill doesn't mean she wasn't allowed to be teased a little.

"Senpai, it hurts to talk" Rise said, deadpan.

"And?"

"So don't make me go through pain just for this dumb conversation"

"Sorry" Yu smiled. "I'll just grab the first one I see" he said as he went to leave the room. "You gonna be OK while I'm downstairs?"

"I've been fine all day, I can live without you for another ten minutes" Rise giggled, again starting to cough.

Once Yu was in the kitchen, he was greeted once again by Rise's grandmother, taking tea.

"Hello again, Yu-kun"

"Hello" he said, smiling. "Do you mind if I use your kitchen? Rise's asking for soup"

"Of course not, Yu-kun, I trust you not to burn my house down" she laughed to herself.

While the soup was on the boil, Yu took the time to log another conversation with Rise's caretaker. His natural way of making friends worked in his favour with people outside of his generation. They talked about several things, such as how school was going and such, but eventually (as it always did) the subject of Yu and Rise's relationship came up.

"Thank you for coming here today, Yu-kun. I know it means a lot to Rise"

"It's the least I could do" he smiled.

"Usually, when she's sick, she has four or five people doting on her. I know she hates that…" Rise's Grandmother said, staring into her cup of tea. "Having one or two people here who love her is much better for her"

"I know what you mean… Rise isn't a big fan of being made to feel too special, especially by staff like that" Yu smiled wistfully.

"Yes…" the older woman said, looking straight at Yu. "You're a good man, Yu-kun. Wise beyond your years" she smiled. "In many ways, you remind me of Rise's father…"

"Don't say that, now it's weird" Yu joked as he rubbed the back of his head. The two shared yet another laugh.

At that, the egg timer started making its noise to alert Yu of the soup's readiness.

"Right, I better take that to Rise. It was nice talking to you again, Kujikawa-san"

"You as well, Yu-kun" she said, with yet another smile. She was in an incredibly good mood this evening.

Yu carried the piping hot bowl of (what he thought was) chicken soup up the stairs and over to Rise.

"Careful, OK, it's really hot"

"I hope so" she laughed lightly, obviously not wanting to cough again.

Yu simply looked at his girlfriend while she inhaled the meagre meal. Yet again, he felt that twinge of simplicity. It was nice, just to be able to do little things for the girl he loved. Even the little things add up to make someone's life better.

"You're doing it again…" Rise said with a smile.

"Doing what?" He had to ask.

"That thing with your face"

Yu flashed back then, the memory crashing into his head like a train speeding into a tunnel. That first, awkward, moment when they were walking down the street, holding one another's hands. Yu bowed his head as a look of nostalgic joy spread across his face. He stood up and moved his face closer to Rise's.

"Hey" Rise said, bringing her hand to his lips. "Don't, you'll get sick too…"

Yu ignored this, simply moving her hand away and placing his lips upon hers. She leaned into it a little. Apparently, her warning was more of a formality than anything.

xxx

The very next day, it was Rise feeding soup to Yu with him tucked into bed and her waiting on him hand and foot. As Rise sat down next to his futon, she had only one question.

"Was it worth it?"

"Definitely"


	30. Chapter 30 - On their Wedding Day

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Day 30- On their wedding day

xxx

A/N: So we're at the end of the road for this thing D: I had a lot of fun doing it though :D Thanks to everyone for reading the chapters and all the positive feedback. It's incredibly self-affirming to have so many people praise your work, so thanks for that :DI know this is hardly the best written fic on the site or even the Persona portal, so hearing all this positive feedback is really great :D I'm kind of sad to see it end :( Super special thanks to "The Lonesome Komaeda", "Fier66", "Vinz Clortho", and"w01100111" You guys have been awesome :D So anyway, hope you all enjoy this last chapter. If you have any ideas on what I should do next, let me know :) I'm always willing to at least try my hand at stuff XD For anyone unawares, Western Wedding ceremonies are pretty popular in Japan, so hence why I'm writing one of them :) This one is super long! Fitting for a "Grand Finale" so I hope you all enjoy it :) I had a lot of fun writing this, so it certainly won't be my last fic! See you all soon! Regardless, enjoy :)

xxx

"You ready, partner?"

"Kinda… I'm nervous but it's a good nervous, y'know?"

"Well, it's only the most important day of your life, it'll be fine!"

"You're really bad at this"

Yu was dressed up in a suit once again. This time however, it felt right. It was perfect. It was his wedding day. He was marrying Rise Kujikawa. This kid from the city was getting married to one of the biggest names in showbiz. He was going to spend the rest of his life with the woman he loved. He was terrified. At the same time though, he was incredibly hopeful. This was the most "right" thing in the world. Now that he was here and it was happening, he couldn't imagine his life ever not doing this.

"Sorry…" Yosuke said, staring at the floor and scuffing his dress shoes. "I'm a kind of crappy best man, huh?"

"Nah, you're doing alright" Yu smiled. "How are Kanji and Teddie?"

"Surprisingly, they're virtually ready. Kanji just has to find his damn shoes" Yosuke laughed.

"That sounds pretty like him" Yu smiled yet again, turning his face back to the mirror.

"You excited?" Yosuke asked fixing his tie, while just trying to make conversation.

"Yeah…" Yu said, trailing off. He was just looking forward to living his life with Rise. Getting a big house, and a big dog. She'd cook, under his strict supervision, and all the other stuff in Rise's dream. He _would_ make that happen. The two of them had earned that happiness…

Kanji and Teddie came out from the guest bedroom of Yu and Rise's new-ish apartment. Both dressed in suits to match Yosuke's.

"Hey Senpai, this stupid bear here keeps trying to hide my shoes, can you tell him off?"

Senpai had apparently stuck. It had extended way beyond Rise's pet name. There was nothing Yu could do about it, so he just let it slide. He kind of liked it, to be honest.

"Kanji, he's got a lot more on his mind than your shoes. You have 'em now right?"

"Well yeah but still…" Kanji sulked.

This whole exchange was pretty much everything Yu had expected from his friends on his wedding day. He wasn't complaining, however.

"C'mon, we should get going to the chapel" Yu said "Everyone got everything?" He double checked. If he didn't ask, they'd all forget. Needless to say, Yosuke had forgot to pick up his wallet… and his keys.

It was all Yu could do to sigh before he made his way to the cab dropping him off at the chapel.

xxx

Rise's day was even more hectic. Whereas Yu simply had to get a suit on and go, Rise had to worry about her bridesmaids, her hair, her dress, her makeup. Everything. This morning was taking forever. She was sitting in front of a mirror with her grandmother fussing over her hair.

"Don't go too crazy with the hairspray, Grandma, it's really fragile" Rise fretted.

"I know, Rise-chan" Her grandma smiled happily.

"Guys?" Rise shouted somewhere behind her. "How's everything going over there?"

Yukiko, Chie, Naoto were stood all around one another, all wearing deep blue dresses, all in the same style. Each had various beauty products such as hairbrushes, makeup or whatever. Even Chie and Naoto were making a concerted effort to make themselves up. This was Rise's big day after all, it was the least they could do.

"Great!" Chie shouted back to the bride-to-be. "Naoto's just helping Nanako-chan with her dress and stuff"

Sure enough, Naoto was standing behind Nanako, zipping up her deep blue dress. "Thank you!" Nanako said politely to her assistant.

"See, Rise-Chan, everything's going fine. Don't worry" Her grandma smiled again in an effort to reassure her.

"I know… I just want everything to go perfect, you know?" she said, still anxious despite her grandmother's attempts at placating her.

"It will be, Rise. Just think of your life after all of this"

And so she did. Rise did this fairly often from time to time, just daydreaming about the future with her Senpai. She made up their little rituals they'd have, like how he'd always leave a little love note on top of her lunch for the day, or how she'd fix his clothes before he left for work… Well, they did both of those things already, but regardless her fantasy continued. She thought of the big house they'd get in the country, away from the noise and grime of the city. She thought of the dog they would get. They'd call it Rei or something… She wasn't good with names. Ammy? No, that was too on the nose… She thought of the kids they'd have. Two of course, a girl and then a boy. She'd let Yu name them. She'd just screw it up. She thought about being a parent. That would be scary, but she'd have the best teammate by her side. She thought about their twilight years, drinking tea by the garden, playing with their grandchildren and just enjoying their life. Together.

Apparently, Rise had been daydreaming longer than she thought. When she opened her eyes from her little daydream, her hair was done. A smile worked its way across her face, wider than it had ever been before.

"Yeah… It's gonna be great" Was all Rise could manage.

"Rise-chan" Yukiko said, tapping her on the shoulder. "We're ready now"

Rise turned to see her bridesmaids. Her best friends and her soon to be sister-in-law (In name at least).

"You guys all look amazing!" She smiled, standing up to wrap the girls into a hug.

"Rise-chan?" Nanako questioned after she released everyone.

"Yeah, Nanako?" Rise asked the 10 year old.

"You look really pretty! Like a princess!" Nanako enthused.

Rise developed a deep blush at the young girl's compliment. Rise had to admit, she never liked herself more (In terms of appearance). Her long white dress accompanied by her long, rusty coloured, hair (Which was now slightly curled) made her smile whenever she saw herself in the mirror. She'd worn loads of outfits for her job, but it was _this_ one she'd loved the most, out of anything she'd ever worn. And she'd keep it forever. Perhaps in the attic or somewhere. She'd give it to her daughter when she got married…

"Thanks, Nanako-chan" Rise smiled, social convention breaking her out of her imagination.

"Rise-chan" Rise's Grandmother said. "The car's here"

With that, Rise hugged the girls one last time and they all made their way to the car.

xxx

Yu was waiting at the head of the modest church for his soon-to-be-wife. As he looked out over the sea of faces, his distinguished guests, there were a few he recognised. Most of his friends from Inaba were there. Naoki, Kou, Daisuke and Ai were all sitting in pews waiting to begin. Even his friends from outside of school like Shu, Eri (And her son Yuuta) and even Hisano had made it out to see him get married. There were a few absentees, like Yumi who sent her love via a card, saying she couldn't make it due to work. Sayoko from the hospital was also nowhere to be seen. He did receive some flowers marked "-S" this morning, however, so it was a safe bet she received his invitation at the very least.

His family was there too. Well, most of them. His parents had managed to get the day off work saying that they wouldn't miss their only child's wedding for the world. Dojima also turned up, joking with Yu about his early years.

Rise's parents had shown up as well. He'd only met them the once. They weren't that much like Rise or her grandmother. True to Rise's word they were quite strict. They should be part of the ceremony, but Rise herself denied them that saying that "If you aren't going to be around for my childhood, I don't want you doing stuff in my wedding"

He'd have to try and reconcile them all. Hopefully they could put their grudges aside for today at the very least.

There were some people missing that were incredibly important, chief of which was the bride.

"You think she got cold feet?" Yosuke asked, slapping Yu on the back in an attempt to break tension.

"Don't even joke about that" Yu sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I'm just sayin', it happens…" The Junes scion shrugged.

"Yeah well when you're up here, pissing yourself because Chie doesn't show up, you'll have no sympathy from me" Yu said.

"How many times do I have to tell you?" Yosuke said in hushed anger. "There's nothing going on between me and Chie"

"So last Christmas was?" Yu left his question open. They both knew what he was talking about.

"I told you, we both had a little too much to drink"

"'You know, Chie" Yu said, putting on his best Yosuke voice "'You look real cute in that. It'd look better on the…"

"Nobody cares, shut up, we all said we wouldn't talk about it again." Yosuke interrupted.

"I'm just saying, maybe instead of insisting neither of you like one another just open your eyes… You're the only ones who can't see it" Yu said before resuming his pacing. His comment gave Yosuke pause for thought…

Not much else happened after that. Yu simply paced around some more. He knew she was coming. There was probably just traffic. She wouldn't abandon him on their wedding day.

Before long, a dignitary in a grey suit came through the back door of the church and made his way to Yu, whispering only two words in his ear before retreating off to the side.

"She's here".

xxx

"Oh god…" Rise said. She felt like she was going to throw up. Why? This was a normal thing. She was going to stand there, say she loved Yu and then have a party. It seemed ordinary…

So why did she want to sit down, vomit and cry all at the same time.

"Rise, it's going to be alright" Naoto reassured her. Good old Naoto. She would always try and help people rather than hype them up. Luckily this is just what Rise needed.

"I'll be OK, guys. I just need a second…"

Rise stood there, the doors of the church just a few feet away from her. As soon as she moved towards them, the service would start. She'd walk down an aisle and bind herself to Yu Narukami forever… Could she do that? They were both so young after all, he was only 21 and she even younger… Was she having second thoughts?

Of course, it was Nanako that helped Rise through her panic attack.

"Rise-chan. Big Bro really loves you. All you have to do is go in there and say you love him too. It'll be easy!"

Nanako gave Rise's arm a gentle tug, signifying she move her face down to Nanako's level, which she did (She would have done anything at that point, she was that nervous.)

"It's super easy! All you have to do is…" Nanako planted a quick kiss onto Rise's lips, one she would give Yu or her dad. She then continued "And say "I love you! That's all she has to do right?" Nanako asked, turning her head to the older girls for confirmation.

Chie, Naoto and Yukiko all nodded, with Chie saying "Pretty much, yeah"

"Rise. The love of your life is in that room ready to marry you" Her grandmother said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You just have to do this one thing, and then…" The elderly shop owner lowered her Granddaughter's veil over her eyes. "… You can be with him forever" She concluded.

"You guys…" Rise said, her look of fear turning into a smile. Tears of joy began to form in her eyes. "Don't make me cry, my makeups gonna run all over my face!" She laughed. Her friends and family were her strength. She was so happy these were the people she surrounded herself with for this.

"Are you ready, Rise?" her grandmother asked, taking her arm to give her away.

"Yeah, let's do this"

xxx

Yu looked down the aisle from his position near the priest at the head of the church. He saw the girls come down first, obstructing his view of his bride. Chie and Yukiko came first, arm in arm with a very methodical and practiced step. They really didn't want to screw this up. Following them came Naoto, holding the hand of his little sister. The latter was beaming as she walked up towards Yu. This calmed him to no end. If Nanako was smiling, he could smile.

Finally, there was a woman… No, a goddess, walking towards him. She wore the face of someone who could take on the world. The face of someone ready to live their life. A face of someone who was scared, happy and hopeful all at once. The face of someone in love.

This vision was his Rise.

She finally reached him. Her grandmother handed Yu Rise's hand with the words "Make her happy, Yu-kun"

He had a few moments to talk to his fiancé before the crowd finished their hymn. He had to make use of it.

"Hey" he said

"Hey" she returned. Neither knew what quite to say.

"You look radiant" Was something Yu managed to settle on. That seemed normal.

"Thanks" Rise blushed. He wasn't sure if that was the makeup or a genuine one, but it made his heart somersault with happiness.

"How're you feeling?" he whispered over the crowd.

"Really, _really_, nervous" Rise said, averting her gaze from him. "But it's OK. Soon, I'll get to spend my life with you…" she concluded, her blush returning in full force. That one _definitely_ wasn't the makeup.

With that, the crowd finished their chanting and were seated. In just a few minutes, the Fool would be bound to his Lover in holy matrimony…

""Welcome everyone. Yu and Rise have chosen you, those special and important to them, to witness and celebrate the beginning of their life together" The priest began. "Today, as we create this marriage, we also create a new bond and new sense of family - one that will undoubtedly include all who are present here today…"

The service continued. Naoto did a reading, more hymns were sung, Nanako even performed something on the piano for her Big Bro and Rise. Then came the vows… Yu went first.

"Rise. Before I met you, I wasn't sure I'd ever be doing something like this. Now, I can't imagine my life without you in it. I think back on all the stuff that had to have happened to make us meet. My parents had to work abroad, you had to be in showbiz, only to take a break from it. You had to decide to go to Yasogami and I had to make sure not to pick up anyone else first." The audience laughed at that, as did Rise. He always was one to crack a joke, even in serious circumstances. "But I think, that once we met each other, God or Fate wouldn't need to do anything else. Because I don't think I could have stopped myself from falling in love with you" He finished, as he placed the plain wedding band on her finger.

It was Rise's turn now. All she had to do was not cry.

"Senpai… Before you say anything, I'm still going to call you that. Even when we're old and grey, you're my Senpai. Just like how you're always going to be Nanako's 'Big Bro' or Teddie's 'Sensei'. I'm gonna keep calling you Senpai because…" The tears were starting to roll down Rise's face already. God she was bad at this. Yu did what he always did though. He bought a hand to her cheek and wiped away the tears. Nodding at her to go on. She smiled as she battled her way through the rest of the emotional outpour. "Because you're going to keep teaching me things. Like how to be a good wife… And a good mom… And how to not cry at my wedding, can I get that lesson now please?" she laughed through the tears, and the crowd laughed with her. "But most importantly, Senpai. You're gonna keep teaching me how to love. And could ask for a better tutor" She beamed as she slid the ring onto Yu's rough hands. And so, the words that both Rise and Yu were waiting for came from the priest's lips.

"I now pronounce you: Man and Wife. You may kiss the bride"

Before the priest had even finished speaking, Yu pulled his new wife in, closely and smashed their lips together. The crowd erupted into a cacophony of noise behind them.

This kiss was the best, and most special, they would ever share.

xxx

Yu almost dropped Rise on the way into their apartment. It was hard, fumbling with both his wife and his keys, but he managed to pull it off.

"Hey, we did that right this time!" Rise said as he placed her down. Referring to the bridal style he used to carry her up three flights of stairs.

"Yeah" He smiled

"So… crazy party, huh?" Rise asked, sitting down on the sofa, exhausted.

"Oh yeah… I especially liked the part where Yosuke gushed about his date with Chie he has organised for next weekend" Said Yu, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"For real? Those two are _finally_ doing something about that tension?"

"Yep" Yu said as he walked to the kitchen. "You want anything to drink? Like Tea or something?"

Rise contemplated it for a moment before finally answering: "Nah, I think I'll go to bed in a second. Why, are you making some?"

"Yeah, just a quick one before bed"

"Alright… I'll wait for you to finish up, let me just go take this dress off" Rise laughed.

Sure enough, by the time Yu was halfway done with his tea, Rise bounded out of the bedroom in little more that Yu's old tee-shirt (Which had become Rise's pyjamas) and a pair of shorts. She sat on his lap and played with his hair while he drank his beverage.

"So… What's the plan for tomorrow?" She asked, twirling a few loose strands around her index finger.

"I was gonna make you breakfast in bed. Then we have to pack. We have to be at the airport pretty early the day after" Yu said, squeezing his wife's hand.

"Oh yeah… Where are we even going again? It's like, less than 48 hours and you _still_ haven't told me where our honeymoon is…"

"You'll see" Yu said, with a wink. He finished the last of his tea and placed the used cup on the coffee table. With that distraction out of the way, he wrapped both arms around his bride.

"So, Mrs. Narukami? You ready for bed?"

"You have no idea how good it feels to hear you call me that…" Rise said, her face reddening as she burrowed it into the crook of Yu's neck.

Yu carried her into the bedroom, placed her into bed and undressed.

All they did was lay next to one another. Their fingers intertwined and their eyes locked on one another in the darkness. Normally, this is where a couple would "consummate" the marriage. Yu and Rise didn't though. It went unspoken. They didn't want to cheapen their wedding day like that… That was what the honeymoon was for.

Instead, they simply stared at each other, smiling, and squeezing one another's hands. Sleep eventually overtook them, and the sweetest dreams kept them going through the night. Dreams of what was to come.

Dreams that would soon turn into reality.


	31. Another Day - Christmas

30 Day OTP Challenge  
><em>"I'm going to like the me you found… After all, I like the you who found her"<em>

Another Day- Christmas

xxx

A/N: So yeah, this is a thing that's happening XD it's Christmas, so I figure, hey it's time for a Christmas special :) Full disclosure: I _have_ got something else up my sleeve for this story. Just a cool little epilogue that a few people asked for :) However, it's taking longer than expected. I didn't want to do Priestess' Impasse while it's the holidays, it's a little too dark for the festive season, so that'll be updated some time on or after the 26th :) In the meantime, holiday fluff! Yay! Once again, slightly bending reality again XD Happy Holidays to every single one of you. You, reading this, mean a lot to me so thanks for getting this fic as far as it has :D You're awesome, and this is my gift to you :) Regardless, enjoy :)

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Light shone through the crack in the drapes and filled Yu and Rise's bedroom with a soft morning glow. As the light caressed Rise's face, she woke up from her slumber, turned to her husband and simply stared at him for a moment. It was all still so raw to her…

They had been married for just over six months so they were still adjusting to it. Sure, they'd been living together before that, but the dynamic had changed somewhat. Almost like they'd shifted up a gear. Little moments like this were even more significant now. She had to wake him up though, after all they were expecting company…

"Hey, wake up, sleepyhead" She murmured softly as one of her hands stroked Yu's face.

Yu purred a little at her touch before moving his hand to cup hers, his eyes flickering open to take his wife into full view.

"Morning" He said sleepily.

"Merry Christmas, Senpai" she smiled, leaning in to kiss him.

The presence of Rise's lips on his was all he needed to wake him up. It was like a hit of adrenaline straight to his brain.

"Merry Christmas" he said, returning her smile after they separated.

They spent Christmas Eve like any other couple probably would. Yu had to book a table weeks in advance but they managed to have a romantic meal together. After that, they sat around, watched terrible movies and then went to bed… They didn't exactly sleep, however. Today though, they were having company. The Investigation Team was getting together for a party. A modest one, yes, but it would still be nice to see all of them again.

"What're you thinking about?" Rise asked. Apparently she noticed Yu's pensive expression.

"Just the party tonight. I hope they don't wreck the place" Yu joked.

"Well, Teddie's coming so I wouldn't say it's impossible" she giggled.

The two rose from bed after a few more minutes of cuddling. They didn't usually get to do that, what with both of them having to leave for work in the mornings. Today was Christmas, and nothing was going to stop them from having fun.

"So what's the plan?" Rise said as she pulled her sweatshirt on, still not feeling like getting dressed properly.

"We'll eat breakfast and then head off to the airport to pick up Naoto. Then I'll order some food for later. Don't know what we'll do in the meantime, but everyone else should start turning up over time, I guess." Yu reminded his wife.

"Right… Ugh, I wish we'd made more solid plans"

"It'll be fine" Yu smiled at Rise to reassure her. "I told everyone to be here after 12, so they'll probably all be here by 2. You know what they're like"

"Yeah" Rise smiled wistfully as she thought about her friends. The last time they all got together for an event like this was the wedding after party. They'd seen them all individually, of course, but it had been a while since the strong personalities that made up the Investigation Team had all been in the same room. It would certainly be an interesting night, to say the very least.

xxx

After a light breakfast and a somewhat long drive, Yu and Rise had made their way to the airport to pick up Naoto. She was the only person Yu and Rise hadn't seen since the wedding due to her work, trotting across the globe to work as a consulting detective. She hadn't changed all that much. It had only been six months after all. Once they spotted her, Rise ran over and gave Naoto a big hug.

"Naoto-kuuun!" Rise sang as she squeezed her friend.

"H-Hello Rise-san. Could you not hug me so tightly please?" Naoto said as she stood there awkwardly, not really knowing what to do with her hands.

Yu simply outstretched his hand towards the blue haired girl. "Hey"

Naoto shook his hand and simply nodded before saying "Shall we get going? I've had a long flight"

As the trio made their way back to Yu and Rise's love nest, Naoto had several questions.

"So how is everyone?" She said from the back seat of Yu's busted little car.

"Well" Rise began. "Yosuke's doing pretty well. He's assistant manager at Junes. Chie's still doing her police training. When did she say she'll graduate?" She turned to the man in the driver's seat for clarification.

"Next February" he smiled as he took over the report. "Yukiko's still working at her Inn. Kanji took over the textile shop. He said to his mom 'S'no way in hell I'm letting you close this place up just 'cause you're too old'" Yu chuckled as he remembered that before continuing. "Teddie's still living with Yosuke, but that bear never changes and… that's about everyone"

"What about you guys?" Naoto inquired.

"I've got a break for a bit, couple of weeks, for Christmas" Rise said proudly. It was true, she didn't get many days off so she cherished the ones she did. "And Yu's still getting qualified, right?"

"Yeah, but it's not that big a deal…" Yu said, slightly embarrassed.

"Oh come on" Rise retorted. "Being a teacher is a 'big deal'" Rise said with air quotes.

"What about you, Naoto?" Yu asked, changing the subject. "How was America?"

"It was enjoyable, I suppose" Was all they were going to get out the detective.

They continued the rest of the way home with small talk.

xxx

Once they arrived at home, everyone was already inside their small apartment. Most everyone was hanging out in their little living room except Kanji, who was raiding the fridge.

"I gave you a key for emergencies, Yosuke" said Yu, sighing as he saw his friends already making a mess of his house.

"This _was_ and emergency, Sensei!" Teddie piped up. "Kanji was dying!"

"I said I was dying for something to drink, ya dumb bear" Kanji snapped. "Sorry, Senpai"

After everyone calmed down, the token catching up conversation started up.

"So" Rise said, turning to Yosuke and Chie. "How's things, guys?"

"It's pretty good, yeah, business has really picked up since we started working with local busi-" was all Yosuke could say before Chie elbowed him in the ribs.

"Yosuke, she means how is… us?" Chie said, inflecting. Yu smiled. He did similar things when he and Rise started dating.

"Oh… Oh! I mean, yeah, it's good, yeah" Yosuke stumbled over his words as he started talking before Chie glared at him.

"Good?"

"I mean great! Awesome, couldn't be better it's just the best…" Yosuke started to babble under his new girlfriend's scrutiny. The rest of the team couldn't help but laugh.

"What about you, Yukiko?" Yu asked, diverting attention from the Idiot Prince of Junes.

"Good" She said calmly. "Everyone at the inn is working really hard. It's stressful what with all the new responsibilities but I'm getting there with the manager stuff" She smiled as she praised her staff. "Besides, Teddie's been helping me, isn't that right?" She turned to Teddie who puffed out his chest.

"Yep! I help Yuki-chan when I'm not at Junes!" His eyes twinkled with pride.

"Yeah, he's turned into a real workaholic" Yosuke laughed. "Well, not more than Kanji"

"Hey, don't say it like that…" Kanji said, rubbing the back of his neck, apparently his new status was still a raw point for him. "Anyway, shouln't we be givin' presents or whatever?"

"Oh yeah!" Rise said, before dashing off to the bedroom. Before anyone else could say anything, she returned with a large bag in her hand. Overflowing with gifts.

"It's not a lot, but we got something for everyone" Rise said, her face beaming wildly.

As she passed her gifts around, the others produced bags and did the same. The gifts all varied in size, shape and weight but everyone accepted them graciously.

Kanji gave virtually everyone a stuffed version of themselves, albeit with much larger eyes and cuter proportions.

Yukiko, forever awkward, just handed out candy, hoping it would be enough.

Yosuke's gifts were all what one would call "Joke gifts" like a "Kiss the Cook" apron for Yu. When he didn't hand a present to Chie, all he said was she'd "Get hers later… Jeez…" before blushing madly, his red faced mirrored by his new girlfriend.

Chie simply got everyone a gift card. She apologized profusely saying it was "all she could get on her budget". She gave Yosuke a wristwatch however, in front of everyone no less. His face turned an even deeper shade of crimson. After she kissed him on the cheek, he resembled less a man and more a beet with a face.

Naoto's gifts were all exotic affairs from different parts of the world. Every time someone opened one, she had to explain it's function. All except Kanji's which seemed a bit more ornamental. The both of them blushed. It was Yosuke and Chie all over again with these guys.

Teddie seemed to grab stuff he thought they'd like from Junes. This meant Yu got mustard, because he liked cooking. Despite it being an odd gift, it was still very like Teddie.

Yu and Rise got stuff that was somewhat more personal to every person. Yukiko received a very well made, leather bound business diary to keep track of her accounts and such. She was probably just going to doodle in it, but it was the thought that counts. Chie got a few original cells from Trial of the Dragon. She enthused about this greatly, almost kicking a lamp over in the process. Yosuke was given some sort of leather choker that Rise had picked out for him. Yu however, also threw in some sort of dirty magazine, as was tradition. He couldn't be more embarrassed if he tried. Yu and Rise got Kanji a framed photograph of him with his mother. Needless to say, the big sap almost cried right there and then. Instead, he settled for hugging Naoto. Now it was her turn to blush. Speaking of Naoto, Yu had got her a robot kit. It wasn't amazing or anything but it would let her make a simple little robot. She always appreciated the smaller, more empathic gestures so she smiled broadly as soon as she saw the box. Teddie got a box of sweets as well as a strap for his cell phone. Again, nothing extravagant, but it still resonated him in a big way…

The team spent the rest of the night drinking cheap wine, talking about anything and everything and generally enjoying one another's company.

In other words: The Perfect Christmas.


End file.
